The Lost Skywalker
by Charlotte1
Summary: COMPLETE AU Episode III, Anakin Skywalker loves too hard, his precious balance falls when he loves too much
1. The beginning of the end

Title: The end  
  
Author: Charlotte  
  
Disclaimer: Everything except for Mayco and her friends belong to George Lucas. I am making no money out of this.  
  
I know there's only going to be like two years between Episode II and Episode III, so there really isn't time for any of my stories to happen, but I've been bored, so I created this character Mayco.  
  
This is my take on episode three. In my opinion Anakin can't go from being slightly evil one minute to completely Darth Vader the next, so this is all about the event that turns him.  
  
The End  
  
The beginning of the end  
  
" Anakin! Would you stop wishing you were somewhere else? I am trying to concentrate!" Mayco hissed, her young face filled with focus. Anakin grinned and nearly shook his head with affection, but he managed to stop himself in time, so as not to break her gaze and lose the game. It was only a staring game, but the eight-year-old was taking it very seriously, even though she'd already lost three times. And Anakin couldn't let her win, because she could sense that and got annoyed.  
  
" Mayco, sweetheart, it's only a game! And this particular game doesn't require that much attention," he chuckled staring back into her eyes, so like his own it was scary.  
  
" That's what you think," Mayco said in a singsong voice, giving Anakin one of her trademark cheeky faces; so easy for her to pull off on her impish face. Anakin smiled back at her and shrugged his shoulders. They stayed like this for a further five minutes, until Anakin felt his master's presence behind him. He turned around quickly to see if Obi-wan was coming.  
  
" Ha! I win you lose!" Mayco cried triumphantly. Anakin turned back to look at her with a boyish grin.  
  
" You do know you only won because." he began childishly.  
  
" You can't concentrate?" the child suggested happily. Anakin grinned and then turned round to see that Obi-wan had indeed arrived, and was watching them with a subtle smile on his face.  
  
" So what did they say?" Anakin asked expectantly. Obi-wan unfolded his arms and approached the pair slowly, dragging out the suspense. Anakin gave his master a tired look. Mayco just stared at them both in confusion, she had no idea what any of this was about, but she was definitely growing more and more curious.  
  
" They said yes," Obi-wan said suddenly. Anakin's face split into a broad smile and then both men turned on Mayco. She suddenly grew timid and shrunk back into her chair a bit.  
  
" What?" she asked worriedly. Anakin looked to Obi-wan, who nodded, and then he sat down in the chair opposite her.  
  
" We have a little surprise for you!" he said happily. Mayco raised her eyebrows with a slight smile on her face.  
  
" Well?" she finally asked when Anakin didn't continue.  
  
" Oh sorry, yeah we've been given permission by the council to take you on a trip," he said grinning at the child. Mayco's face instantly lit up and she was about to burst out with questions, but Anakin held his hand up. " You don't even know where we're going yet," he laughed. Mayco pouted and gave Anakin the heart melting face that she knew could get her anything she wanted. Anakin shook his head fondly. " Okay we're going to spend a week on Tatooine and a week on Naboo!" The change in the youngster was instantaneous as she leapt off her chair and threw her arms around Anakin's neck.  
  
" Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!" she cried and then lunged at Obi- wan, giving him the same gratitude. " When do we go?" she asked stepping away and looking up at him.  
  
" In two days time," Obi-wan replied.  
  
" Is it like to do with the war?" she asked eagerly.  
  
" Indirectly yes," he answered. Mayco smiled at him and then ran off.  
  
" Hey wait, where are you going?" Anakin called after her. Mayco skidded to a halt and turned around grinning fit to burst.  
  
" I have to go tell Tio, she's going to be totally psyched for me!" she called to them jumping up happily as she spoke and then she ran off again. When she'd turned the corner at the end of the hall Anakin turned to Obi- wan with a truly happy look on his face.  
  
" See! I told you it was a good idea!" Anakin said cheerfully.  
  
" Don't you think she's going to suspect something? Or pick up more strongly on your emotions and those of Padme?" Obi-wan countered worriedly. " I still think this is risky Anakin! We could confuse her greatly!" Anakin nodded grimly.  
  
" I know, but this is important to me, I want her to at least see where she's come from!"  
  
" But she's visited Naboo before!" Obi-wan pressed on. " And I don't think that war time is the ideal time to take her all the way to the outer rim! Anything could happen and you know how the council feels about this child!"  
  
" Yeah I know it's not the best time, but Padme wants to see her, she hasn't seen her in so long! The last time was when Mayco was just a little girl!" Anakin said getting a little emotional.  
  
" She still is just a little girl," Obi-wan warned and Anakin nodded grimly.  
  
" I know," Anakin sighed and he hung his head. Obi-wan grinded his teeth for a moment and walked over to his charge.  
  
" Come on, Master Windu has requested an audience with us, to discuss some.guidelines.for our trip," Obi-wan told him and together they walked off.  
  
* * *  
  
Meanwhile Mayco had reached her corridor and she ran over to her room. She could sense her roommate's presence in their room, so she barged straight in. Tio was standing facing the door with her arms crossed, she had sensed Mayco too.  
  
" What's happened?" she asked sounding amused.  
  
" Anakin and Master Obi-wan are taking me on a two week trip to the outer regions!" Mayco sang happily. Tio's eyes bulged jealously.  
  
" No way! That is the coolest! When?" she cried.  
  
" In two days!" Mayco replied and she jumped onto her bed enthusiastically and started jumping up and down. Tio grinned and jumped onto her own bed and started jumping. " I mean this trip is going to be awesome, imagine if we're flying along innocently and then this dirty great big Sith ship comes along and attacks us," Mayco began happily, getting completely overexcited. " And then 'oh no!' Anakin and Obi-wan are knocked out and then I have to fight the Sith lord on my own!" Now both girls were overexcited and Mayco used the force to bring a fake lightsaber to her hand (it was a toy - a coloured plastic rod with a handle). Tio grinned and copied her friend's lead and the two started sparring with the toy's making lightsaber sound effects. " And I fight gallantly, making all the right moves!" Mayco carried on happily, as the two jumped from bed to bed fighting. " Until finally, I get him right in the heart!" she cried triumphantly and stuck her toy sword under Tio's arm mid jump and they fell to the floor; Tio faked a strangled cry. " And then I win! Saving the universe from evil everywhere!" Mayco panted and she leant back on her knees with a sudden rush of panic. Tio sat up quickly.  
  
" May.what's wrong?" she asked sounding concerned. Mayco gulped and turned to look at her friend.  
  
" I don't know.I just suddenly had this bad feeling, like something horrible was going to happen," Mayco said shakily and she shook her head quickly. " I mean it's gone now.but man that was weird!" Tio gave Mayco a sympathetic look and they both got to their feet.  
  
" Uh.feel like going for dinner, we have meditation like in an hour and I'm hungry!" Tio suggested. Mayco nodded eagerly and she quickly changed out of her training clothes (very baggy orange trousers and a black tight T-shirt that the children at the temple spend their time in when they exercise) and into her formal. She then did her hair up quickly and attached her lightsaber to her belt.  
  
" Ready?" Tio asked standing by the door. Mayco nodded and they headed out of their room.  
  
" You always get premonitions though don't you May? I mean you're like so powerful, didn't Master Windu say that was normal?" Tio said as they walked. Mayco shrugged.  
  
" Yeah normally they're not bad ones though.Tio.it was like I felt my own death!" Mayco said shuddering at the thought. Tio furrowed her brow worriedly and looked over at her friend. " I mean can you imagine." she began, but as they rounded a corner they saw Obi-wan and Anakin coming towards them down the other end. " Don't tell them, act normal," Mayco said quickly and she put on a happy face and cleared her mind of any bad thoughts. Within a few minutes they met half way down the corridor.  
  
" Have you got classes to get to?" Obi-wan asked the children good- naturedly.  
  
" Yeah later, we're going to dinner now," Mayco answered and she looked from Obi-wan to Anakin, but he was staring at her with a weird look on his face.  
  
" What's wrong?" he asked her. Mayco frowned at him in confusion.  
  
" I don't." she began hesitantly.  
  
" You're hiding something," Anakin said sounding very concerned and almost aggressive. Mayco bit her lip and looked to Obi-wan for support, why did Anakin always have to get like this? He was so overprotective!  
  
" Come on Anakin, we're going to be late," Obi-wan said. " You'd better go girls, you're going to run out of time if you're not careful," he said and the girls nodded and started walking off.  
  
" Bye," they called and they rushed off. Obi-wan waited till they were out of earshot and then rounded on Anakin.  
  
" You must be careful Anakin! You were really upsetting her, you must have sensed that. Remember she doesn't have to tell you everything!" Obi-wan warned.  
  
" Well she should," Anakin said grumpily. " I am her father!"  
  
" She doesn't know that, but at this rate, she's going to figure it out unless you calm down a bit!" Anakin sighed and shook his head sadly.  
  
" It's getting so hard to be less involved, I want her to know who I am and how much I care and why I care so much!" Anakin said passionately. Obi-wan nodded.  
  
" I can understand that this is hard for you, but remember, neither of you will ever become Jedi if she finds out who you really are and your connection with her grows deeper than it should," Obi-wan said. Anakin closed his eyes and nodded.  
  
" I hate not being able to hold her.or to comfort her when she's upset.or share her experiences with her. I helped make her, she's mine and I can't even tell her how much she means to me!" Obi-wan stared sadly at his padawan.  
  
" I know. Come on, we have meditation of our own to get to," he told the young man and Anakin nodded. Together they walked off.  
  
* * *  
  
" Oh crap! Yeah why do they insist on serving all this green slime every Wednesday, I mean I just don't get it. What is it anyway?" Mayco demanded as she sat down with her tray opposite Tio.  
  
" I think it's some sort of vegetable," Tio said frowning at her own serving.  
  
" So why does it taste so.meaty?" Mayco countered raising her eyebrows worriedly. She then dropped her spoon back in the bowl and pushed it away. " Uh uh, I am not eating that!"  
  
" Mayco come on! You know what'll happen if you don't eat! Anakin and Master Kenobi will totally freak at you!" Tio warned. Mayco sighed and stared at the sludge.  
  
" No seriously, what is that?" she cried out. She then tasted it again and shuddered, but ate the concoction anyway. " I think they should scrap the endurance test off the course, this is testing my endurance more than any exam they set!" Tio laughed out loud and nodded in agreement. At this point several children joined them at their table.  
  
" Oh hey guys," Mayco greeted them, they were the children from most of their classes. Mayco shared all her non-physical classes with these children, but when it came to learning how to use a lightsaber, or control the force, or combat drills, she had her own mentor: Yoda.  
  
" You guys see what's on the menu today?" Kara, one of the smallest of the various children said with a happy look on her face. " Drelliks!" she said. The change within Mayco and Tio was instantaneous as they leapt to their feet and ran out of the mess hall, crashing into several younger students on their way, leaving a trail of mayhem behind them as usual. They headed straight for the nearest bathroom and fell into two neighbouring cubicles and then they started throwing up. They stayed like this for five minutes until someone else walked in the bathroom.  
  
" Mayco Naberrie, Tio Al'lin! Get out here now, what are you two playing at, you've just caused chaos in the mess hall!" It was the hall monitor Shari (someone these two girls had been in trouble with since they moved in together). Mayco grimaced and wiped her mouth with some tissue, but then crept out of the cubicle. Shari was glaring at her.  
  
" What's wrong with you? You're shaking!" Shari demanded angrily. Mayco was feeling a little shivery.  
  
" Nothing, just feeling a little cold that's all," Mayco said, forcing her mind to think it was the truth (she had a knack of hiding the truth from everyone at the academy, except for everyone on the council, Obi-wan and Anakin - the latter two knew her too well!).  
  
" Well get out of here at once and go and help clean up the younger children, they're all distraught, they had a recital to show the council and now they're all covered in Drelliks!" Shari hissed. Just hearing the name Drelliks made Mayco wretch again, but she managed to contain herself - Drelliks were a favourite food amongst many children in the academy, but Mayco and Tio had hated it ever since one of the older children in the academy had played a prank on them and made them believe it was animal dung and entrails, unfortunately the pair had never found out the truth, because the dish was actually perfectly harmless.  
  
" Well I'm sorry, but we have class now," Mayco said shaking a bit more from her nausea. Shari screwed up her face angrily.  
  
" Miss Naberrie you will." Shari began furiously, but at this point Tio came out of her cubicle and the two of them made a run for it. Shari didn't even try and followed. " I am going to tell the council about this! You mark my word!" she shouted after them. The two girls didn't stop running till they reached their meditation hall.  
  
" Better be in trouble with the capes later than now," Mayco said grimly and they composed themselves before calmly walking into the hall. There were a few children in there already, but mostly it was empty. The two girls walked to the back of the hall and sat down on the two furthest cushions.  
  
" You're probably putting your trip in danger," Tio said softly. Mayco grinned and shook her head.  
  
" No, Ani will talk them round, you know what he's like! He'll do anything for me!" Mayco said grinning.  
  
" Yeah I still don't get that, he adores you!" Tio said sadly, very envious of Mayco's relationship with both men.  
  
" Yeah it's like he thinks he's like my father or something!" Mayco said shrugging her shoulders. Mayco furrowed her brow in thought; she often got very weird emotions off Anakin. She knew she had a weird bond with him, but she couldn't quite pinpoint how. At this point Anis walked over to them and sat down enthusiastically next to them. She was smiling fit to burst. Mayco gave Tio a tired look, but then turned on Anis with a broad smile.  
  
" Hey Anis, how are you?" she asked with fake-enthusiasm. Anis was a third wheel so to speak, she often tried to tag along with these two, but they found her insufferable sometimes and often were quite mean to the poor girl - but they were the coolest children in their class, so she always tried to suck up to them.  
  
" I'm great! How are you?" Anis asked in a bubbly voice. Mayco nodded slightly and then turned back to Tio, totally ignoring the other girl.  
  
" You do remember that we still have that.you know.this evening?" she said softly, with Anis peering over her shoulder curiously. Tio nodded and smiled slightly, well aware that they were expected to compete in the dangerous underground racing sport 'the lower region space speedway games', they crashed almost every race, but were starting to get the hang of it. They had first become interested in this sport when Anakin had told them exciting bedtime stories about it and his days in podracing.  
  
" We'd better get away before the capes get us too, because when we get back, we'll be in enough trouble," she added thoughtfully. Tio sighed and nodded. " Straight after this maybe?"  
  
" Or now," Tio suggested. Mayco raised her eyebrows.  
  
" Now?"  
  
" Yeah well they might send someone to get us from class, we should go now!" Mayco thought about it for a split second and then jumped to her feet.  
  
" Okay let's go," she said and the two of them bolted. They made it just in time, because as they rounded the corner the tutor was coming along. They ran all the way to their room and then locked the door.  
  
" But Mayco, how are we going to get out? They know the laundry route now.what?" Tio asked, but she stopped because Mayco was staring out of the window. She instantly knew what her friend was thinking. " Um.isn't that slightly.insane?"  
  
" No," she said and she used the force to open her cupboard door. " We still have these!" she said sneakily pulling out a machine that they had been working on out with the force. It was a power machine that would give you thrust for five minutes in flight. " We could catch a ride on a bus or something," she said.  
  
" Hover till we find one going south right?" Tio asked. Mayco grinned and nodded.  
  
" Yep, that's the plan," she said. " We'll probably have to split up, and we should free fall for the first hundred feet or so, or at least until we hit mainstream traffic!" Tio nodded and they both pulled their cloaks on. Then Tio found her hover machine and the two of them made their way out onto the balcony.  
  
" Got the money?" Tio checked. Mayco nodded and patted her bag protectively.  
  
" Let's just hope I don't lose that," Mayco said happily as she jumped onto the ledge with ease. Tio jumped with her and they looked down. " See you at Parada, outside Dennies!" Then with that, the two girls jumped. They fell and fell, lower and lower.  
  
* * *  
  
.Sitting in a conference room, Anakin and Obi-wan were discussing more details about their trip with Mace Windu. Master Windu had his back to the window, so he didn't see the two shapes suddenly drop past the window at lightning speed. Both Obi-wan and Anakin though, stared bewildered at the window for a moment. Mace frowned and turned around. Seeing nothing he turned back on the men.  
  
" What?" he asked, but Obi-wan and Anakin rushed to the window, just in time to see the two girls start their hover droids and zoom off out of site in the direction of Parada.  
  
" That was Mayco!" Anakin said looking up at Obi-wan worriedly.  
  
" And they're heading for Parada!" Obi-wan added sounding even more worried. They both knew instantly what the girls were up to (Anakin himself had competed in the games several times). Mace had overheard them.  
  
" Go bring them home," he said sounding tired and Anakin and Obi-wan rushed off. Pretty soon they reached the speeder bay and they jumped into their speeder.  
  
" If you're careful you can catch them before they get there," Obi-wan said stressing the word careful, but Anakin had no intentions on being careful, his daughter was about to go and kill herself and he was expected to stay careful?  
  
* * *  
  
Meanwhile, skirting between speeders and ships Mayco was looking for a suitable transport that would bring her to Parada. She had lost site of Tio a while ago, so she was on her own now. Suddenly and quite sporadically her hover droid started spluttering and within seconds the engine gave way and she was free falling.  
  
" Uh oh!" she said calmly and she quickly landed and then jumped off a speeder. She could see where she was headed, a pedestrian passageway that surrounded a park like area. Now this was fun, jumping from one speeder to the next.  
  
" There she is!" Anakin yelled to Obi-wan over the noise of the wind and the speeder. They'd already picked Tio up out of mid air.  
  
" She's heading for that walk way," Obi-wan said pointing. " Put her down on it, we'll wait for her there." Anakin obeyed and within no time they were leaning over the railing watching as Mayco got closer and closer and eventually touched down on the walk way. She looked smug for two seconds, then felt roughly to see if her bag was still with her. Obi-wan and Anakin approached (having left a very grumpy Tio in the speeder). Mayco must have sensed them, because suddenly she turned and saw them. She bolted.  
  
" Mayco stop!" Anakin yelled and he and Obi-wan charged after her. It was hard, man that kid was fast! Mayco herself was panicking, she'd be in big trouble if they caught her. She crashed into someone because of her panic. Unfortunately, the guy was huge and intoxicated.  
  
" Hey, watch it!" he yelled and he shoved her. She fell, but rolled quickly and got to her feet. The man pulled out a blaster.  
  
" Crap," Mayco muttered and she pulled out her lightsaber. Behind the man she could see Obi-wan and Anakin getting closer. The man started shooting at her and she easily deflected the bolts onto the ground. Then she used the force to bring a can towards the man's hands at great speed and force, it knocked the blaster clean out of his hands.  
  
" Why you little!" he yelled and he charged at her knocking her lightsaber out of her hands and over the edge onto the set of consecutive domes under the passageway.  
  
" You idiot!" she hissed at the man and she did a backwards summersault onto the railing, then another backwards flip, then on her third backwards flip she spun around mid air and then carried on after the lightsaber headfirst. Anakin saw what she was doing and immediately saw he had to help. So he too jumped over the railing, but he landed lower than Mayco on a gutter between two domes. He sprinted down the gutter until he was directly below her and prepared for impact.  
  
" Watch out!" Mayco yelled when she saw him. It was Anakin who had miscalculated, because Mayco hit him with incredible force and the two of them started rolling down the last of the domes after the lightsaber. The end was approaching fast, and Mayco's only concern was that her precious lightsaber was bouncing out of reach. When they reached the end of the dome the lightsaber tumbled over first, then Mayco freefalling after it, but Anakin grabbed onto the railing of the gutter with his good hand and then reached out desperately to grab Mayco. He managed to grab a handful of cloak and shirt, whilst she reached out her arm and used all her power over the force to stop her lightsaber from falling and bring it to her hand. It was incredibly difficult at first, she'd never tried anything like this, but then, soon enough she felt the familiar Force grip on it and she drew it to her. By the time it reached her hand it was going at a cracking pace. Feeling her fingers clasping round it was the most wonderful feeling ever, and then she quickly attacked it to her belt.  
  
" You know, I'm beginning to think you'll do anything for that thing," Anakin said sounding amused. It was true, he'd taken her out to see a Packball match (a game similar to baseball) the other week and she'd cleared a space in the stands of 10 meters in diameter of people with the force just to find it when it had dropped out of reach. Injuring several people in the process. Mayco grinned and nodded.  
  
" My father made the handle for me sir, it's all I have," she said. Anakin felt a pang of pain. She was right, he had made that handle for her when she was a baby, it had been his parting gift.  
  
" Let me go," Mayco suddenly said. Anakin knew what she was doing so he did. She only dropped a few centimetres, because she suddenly grabbed onto his leg and started climbing up to his shoulders.  
  
" Excuse me sir," she said as she climbed up onto his shoulders and then onto his head. She was so small that she had to make a jump off him and onto the railing. She pulled herself up into the gutter and sat down panting. Anakin then pulled himself up and stood leaning against the dome. He could feel a few bruises forming, but looking down at his daughter's blonde hanging head, he reminded himself how much she was worth. If anything happened to that child he would never forgive himself. As he thought this Mayco suddenly leapt to her feet all set on jumping off the railing. Anakin reached out as quickly as he could and grabbed the back of her cloak again. Now he held her leaning over the edge, practically horizontal.  
  
" Now what are you doing?" he asked sounding half amused and half annoyed.  
  
" Tio, I have no idea where she went!" Mayco said sounding frantic. " If anything happens to her it's all my fault, let me go sir, I have to find her!" she cried and she struggled madly. Anakin was loosing grip on her cloak, so he gave one almighty pull and lifted her clean off her feet and into the crook of his arm, where he held her firmly.  
  
" You're not going anywhere," he said firmly. " And we've already picked up Tio, she's fine, a little angry maybe." Mayco sighed and nodded.  
  
" All right then, you could have said," she muttered. " Could you put me down now?" she asked and he obliged. Anakin wondered whether he should be the one to reprimand her. He felt he should certainly say something.  
  
" You know that you could get killed in speed races?" he said in a stern tone. Mayco nodded without looking up at him.  
  
" Don't start on me sir, please! Not you!" Mayco suddenly said looking up at him sadly and Anakin realised for a moment that she was really beginning to look like Padmé. Sure, she had his colourings, but her face was so similar to her mother's, it was scary. She was such a beautiful child. " You've always told me stories about how you used to podrace back on Tattooine! So you can hardly turn round and tell me I can't speed race, when it's so much safer than what you used to do!" she said firmly.  
  
" If you'd listened more carefully, you would have heard me saying I had no choice! I raced to survive!" he said sternly.  
  
" And I race for my honour," she muttered. Anakin sighed. He knew how important it was to a child to fit in. Mayco was like a god to the young Padawans at the temple. Not because she was so amazingly talented, but because she was daring and adventurous and never backed away from any challenge. and got in trouble every other second. Under any other circumstances he would be proud of her, but he didn't want her to get hurt.  
  
" Trust me Mayco, you're honour is not worth risking your life for," he told her. She must have sensed his emotion in his voice, because she suddenly looked up at him, but then all of a sudden Obi-wan in a speeder, with Tio still in the back appeared at eye-level. Anakin and Mayco jumped in, Anakin next to Obi-wan and Mayco next to Tio in the back. Mayco nodded grimly to Tio and they both stayed silent for the whole journey back to the temple. Once they got there the two girls started off in the direction of their room.  
  
" You two, wait!" Obi-wan called to them. " The council want to see you!" Mayco and Tio exchanged a scared look, but then they both mastered their fear.  
  
" Lead on," Mayco muttered to the men and so they did, with Mayco and Tio following, their heads hanging in shame. Within moments they reached the council room and the girls were ordered to wait outside whilst Anakin and Obi-wan went in and explained to them.  
  
" What do you think they'll do?" Tio asked sounding bemused.  
  
" Same thing they did last time probably, revoke our privileges for a week or something," Mayco replied softly. " You know, we must be losing it! We haven't sneaked out successfully in over a month!" she suddenly said sounding angry.  
  
" We were really unlucky to get caught that time though, how did they know?" Tio asked. Mayco shrugged her shoulders.  
  
" I have no idea!" she muttered. " We planned it so well!" They sat in silence for fifteen more minutes until finally the door slid open and they were called in. They walked in and bowed lightly to the council. Obi-wan and Anakin were standing in the middle of the room. They cleared slightly to the side and so Mayco and Tio took their places.  
  
" This is the second time this month you two have been caught sneaking out to Parada," Mace said. "And earlier today Master Shari came to me telling me about the chaos you caused in the mess hall, and then how you flatly disobeyed her. It seems that you never learn!"  
  
" Good Jedi learn to obey rules," Even Piell said from the other side of the room. " Whereas you two only seem to learn new ways in which to break them!" Silence followed this statement.  
  
" Anything to say in defence do you have?" Yoda eventually said.  
  
" No master Yoda," both girls said clearly and unemotionally.  
  
" Then on to your punishment," Mace said. The girls looked him straight in the eye. " We have tried everything with you two and nothing seems to work! So we're going to see if you still get in trouble if you're apart!" he told them. Mayco glanced quickly at Tio and then straight back at Mace. She didn't like the sound of this. " You are both to transfer to separate single rooms and you will not be permitted to see each other for at least a month." Mayco's jaw dropped slightly. She's shared rooms with Tio further back then she could remember. Tio was a like a sister to her, the only 'family' that she had. Sure she had plenty of other friends, she was very popular, but none like Tio.this wasn't fair!  
  
" Something to say have you Mayco?" Yoda suddenly said. Mayco snapped her gaze on him, how did he always manage to read her thoughts? She had a strong mind, it should be impossible to read her thoughts, but yet Yoda always managed.  
  
" No Master Yoda," she said gravely.  
  
" But unfair you find this," Yoda stated.  
  
" Yes Master Yoda."  
  
" You brought this on yourself Mayco, you have to learn to obey rules and orders, you'll never become a Jedi if you can't learn to do those things," Mace told her. Mayco nodded. This she knew. " Then it's agreed. Go and start packing your things and someone will be with you shortly to take you to your new rooms." Mayco and Tio bowed again and then walked out slowly, side by side, each thinking about what this meant. They walked in silence all the way to their room and only when they got there did it sink in what all this meant.  
  
" I can't believe they are actually doing this," Mayco said coldly, as she sat down on the bed she'd slept in for the last four years. She had so many memories from this room, but she never thought she'd feel this bad about leaving it.  
  
" They can keep us apart, but they'll never stop us from being friends," Tio suddenly said. Mayco looked at her and nodded.  
  
" I still can't believe that they're doing this!" she repeated and she begrudgingly picked up her large travelling bag and used the force to quickly and efficiently empty her wardrobe.  
  
" How are we going to move all our stuff?" she then asked as she opened her cupboard and looked inside and then looked round the room. Her stuff was everywhere, and she had art work stuck to the walls. This room was her home! The answer came when two droids appeared with huge crates. Mayco exchanged a sad look with Tio and then used the Force to strip the room of any sign that they were ever there. When they were done Mayco gave the empty room one last sad gaze and then she walked out and started following her droid. Tio was being led in the opposite direction.  
  
" They can't stop us from seeing each other either!" Mayco called after her and then she begrudgingly followed the droid to a different part of the temple. It led her to a narrow corridor with lots of doors on it and stopped by one of them. Mayco opened it with bated breath and nearly closed it again once she saw what was inside. It was tiny, had no windows and was definitely colder than any other room she'd been in. The droid pushed the crate in and then shut the door and left. Mayco felt forlorn, how could this be happening. She sat down on the bed and it felt distinctly different to her own comfy bed.  
  
" This is a nightmare," she told herself and she quickly went about unpacking her clothes and then some of her personal items to make her new room look more homely. It didn't work, so she gave up and lay down on the bed staring up at the ceiling. She lay there for quite some time, until someone signalled at her door to come in.  
  
" It's open," Mayco called to whoever was standing there. The door slid open and she wasn't surprised to see Anakin and Obi-wan standing there. They walked in and looked around.  
  
" Well it's nice," Anakin lied. Mayco sighed.  
  
" It feels like a prison cell," she said unemotionally and then she shivered. " And it's so cold!" Anakin sat down on the crate as Obi-wan sat down in the chair.  
  
" Well you could ask a droid to alter the environmental controls," Obi-wan suggested.  
  
" It would still be cold, the sun has never touched this room, how could it be warm?" Mayco said softly. " I'm going to have nightmares in this room, I can tell!" Obi-wan and Anakin exchanged a sad look. " And it's lonely, I never realised how much Tio meant to me! She's the only family that I'll ever have, and even then she's not really family, but she's still my closest friend, we're closer than family! No.actually that's a lie!"  
  
" What do you mean?" Anakin asked. Mayco seemed to think about it.  
  
" I remember how my father felt," she finally said and Anakin glanced worriedly at Obi-wan. " I remember when he gave me away.well no.I remember how I felt when he gave me away! I had like this amazing connection with him, and even though I must have only been a tiny baby, I guess I knew who he was. When I was alone that night, I cried for him. That's the only memory I have of what having a family feels like. They are so close and so important to you, that it kills you a little bit every day you're away from them," she said. When she was finished Anakin was in torment.she was making him relive the terrible day he gave her up.she was sitting right next to her father, the man who had broken her heart when she was one day old and she didn't even know it. Silence followed, and then Mayco spoke again. " And now I have no one."  
  
" That's not true, you have us, and all you're other friends," Anakin said, trying to sound unemotional, but failing. For the second time that day, Mayco stared him straight in the eye, a glimmer of comprehension in her gaze.she was so close to understanding who he was, but yet so far too.  
  
" It's not the same," she eventually said. Then she smiled cheekily, her old self, beaming at them. " I mean great as you guys are and everything, you can never replace my family, whoever and wherever they are!"  
  
" That may be so, but we're still here for you if you need us," Obi-wan said quickly, so Anakin wouldn't speak and give away even more of the big secret. A silence followed, in which Mayco nodded silently to herself. " Speaking of which," Obi-wan carried on. " You're lucky that we care so much, we had to pull some considerable strings to ensure that the council would still permit you to come with us on our mission!" Mayco's face lit up slightly.  
  
" Thank you," she said quickly.  
  
" Though I'm not sure you deserve to go after this evening," Obi-wan said sternly. " You have to learn how to control yourself, the council will eventually get fed up of your antics and expel you from the academy." Mayco looked up looking slightly alarmed, though secretly she knew that would probably never happen, she was too powerful to let go.  
  
" I said I was sorry about all that," Mayco said in a tired blasé tone. Obi- wan looked at her even more sternly, she was getting too cocky.  
  
" You will learn your place little one," Obi-wan warned and he stood up. " I'll see you tomorrow. I suggest that you stay here and try and think about the implications of your actions, and then try and get a lot of sleep!" Mayco nodded.  
  
" I'm sorry sir," she said and Obi-wan nodded back to her and left. Mayco watched him go and felt very guilty. She then turned back to Anakin who was staring at her with some disappointment in his face.  
  
" Not you as well!" Mayco said tiredly. " Please! I never meant for any of this to happen, you've got to believe me!" Anakin nodded and stood up himself and walked over to the child. He patted her head sadly and then walked out. Mayco closed her eyes sadly and lay down on her new bed. What a day!  
  
* * *  
  
A few hours later, after several sessions of mediation, someone signalled at Mayco's door.  
  
" Come in," she shouted and the door slid open. When Mayco saw who it was she cringed a little; it was the chancellor. Palpatine was extremely interested in Mayco's upbringing and her training and he met with her twice a week. Mayco distrusted him immensely.  
  
" I was hoping to find you still awake," he said in a dark tone as he walked in and sat down in the chair.  
  
" I was meditating sir," Mayco replied.  
  
" I should hope so after the trouble you've caused," he growled. " I hope they have punished you!" Mayco nodded and indicated her surroundings, getting a little annoyed that he was punishing her too now. " You could have got yourself killed, and you could have killed that poor girl Tio. You put other people's lives in danger far too often young Skywalker, you have to."  
  
" What?" Mayco suddenly asked frowning.  
  
" Don't talk to me with such an insolent tone!" the chancellor snapped.  
  
" No you called me Skywalker," Mayco retorted quickly, and a little angrily, her anger was definitely anger.  
  
" I did no such thing!" Palpatine roared.  
  
" Yeah you did! You said young Skywalker! I think you're a little confused," Mayco said touchily.  
  
" Why of all the insolent. you'd better start treating me with respect child, or I will ensure that your punishment is doubled!" he snapped. Mayco's jaw dropped.  
  
" That's not fair!" she cried, oh how she hated this man.  
  
* * *  
  
Elsewhere in the temple Anakin and Obi-wan were sitting eating their dinner when both of them felt the tremor in the force.  
  
" What was that?" Obi-wan gasped. It had been so powerful and so dark; it had definitely unnerved him a bit. Anakin gripped the side of the table and closed his eyes; his daughter was feeling hatred.something she had never felt before.  
  
" It's Mayco! We have to get to her!" Anakin suddenly exclaimed and the two men jumped to their feet and ran out of their quarters. They met Mace and Yoda in the corridor heading in the same direction.  
  
" You felt it too?" Mace asked as they ran.  
  
" Yeah!"  
  
" Whatever is happening to her, it's causing a huge disturbance in the force, everyone in the temple is feeling it," Mace told them. They'd soon reached Mayco's new quarters and they rushed in to find the small child standing in front of the chancellor screaming at him with tears rushing down her face. Hatred was flowing from her. Mace rushed in and grabbed her, but she was struggling away from him.  
  
" Anakin help me!" Mace yelled and Anakin rushed in too and grabbed the small child whilst Obi-wan rushed the Chancellor out of the room.  
  
" I was only trying to discipline her," the chancellor insisted before making his way down the corridor. Inside the room Mayco was calming down slightly, but was very shaky.  
  
" What the hell just happened?" Anakin demanded.  
  
" I don't know," Mayco cried. " He made me so angry, he was being so mean and then." Everyone sensed that she was hiding something, something which to her had been horrific.  
  
" Then what?" Obi-wan asked gently. Mayco shook her head. " Mayco please sweetheart, tell us what?" But the child shook her head again. Obi-wan sighed and looked to Mace and Yoda, who were holding a hushed conversation in the corner.  
  
" I think the child needs lots of sleep," Mace finally said. " We can discuss this in the morning, but for now, just try and rest Mayco," Mace told her. Mayco nodded and swallowed hard.  
  
" Yes sir, goodnight," she said and the two council members left the room.  
  
" Can you tell us now?" Anakin asked, but Mayco shook her head shakily. Anakin sighed and looked to Obi-wan for help.  
  
" Let's juts let her sleep Anakin," he said and he was about to leave.  
  
" Wait!" Mayco said and she sat up to look at both men. " Tell me a bedtime story!" Both men grinned.  
  
" Aren't you a bit old for that, we haven't told one of those in years," Obi-wan chuckled. Mayco shook her head solemnly. Obi-wan laughed and nodded. " Very well." Mayco smiled and snuggled down under her covers as Obi-wan sat down in the lazy chair by the bed. Anakin was about to stand up and move to the other chair, but Mayco reached out and grabbed his shirt.  
  
" What are you doing?" she asked him furrowing her brow. " You always lie with me for stories!" she said in an accusing tone. Anakin grinned.  
  
" I thought you'd be too old for that now!" he said as he lay down next to her and she dragged his arm round her.  
  
" No. It makes me feel safe," Mayco said and she closed her eyes. " Tell me the story of how you guys escaped execution with the senator on Geonosis!" Obi-wan smiled at Anakin, that was an old time favourite story. And so they started telling the story, but before the end the child was already fast asleep, and so Anakin kissed the back of her head and carefully got off the bed and walked out with Obi-wan.  
  
" Whatever happened to her in there, brought her very close to the dark side.closer than she's ever been before.she was very scared and very angry about something," Obi-wan said grimly as they walked home.  
  
" I know, I felt it too," Anakin agreed. " I want to know what it was!"  
  
* * *  
  
Hours later still Mayco was sweating in her sleep, she was tossing and turning and crying out.she was having a bad nightmare. It was so bad that it woke her up. She sat in bed for a few minutes before she realised that she needed Anakin. He could always calm her down. So she crawled out of bed and pulled on her loose training shoes. Then she scampered out of her room and through the empty corridors of the temple. She'd nearly reached Anakin and Obi-wan's quarters when she ran into none-other than Shari.  
  
" Mayco Naberrie!" Shari bellowed causing the eight-year-old to leap up and turn around in fright. " Walking around the temple after hours is forbidden! You know that! And with all the trouble you're in." she hissed.  
  
" Yeah but I have to go see Master Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker, please it's urgent!" Mayco begged, but Shari just shook her head and glared at the child. So Mayco reached out with the force till she could sense Obi-wan, he was meditating.  
  
*Obi-wan!* she thought hard, trying to reach out to the master. *Obi-wan please! I need you!* After a moments silence she finally got a result, when the door to their quarters opened and Obi-wan stepped out.  
  
" What is going on here?" he asked Shari.  
  
" I've caught Miss Naberrie sneaking around the corridors after hours," Shari said curtly.  
  
" Yes that's right, I've been expecting her," Obi-wan said and Shari looked horrified, " I am ever so sorry Master Kenobi," she said and she rushed off. Mayco nodded gratefully to Obi-wan and followed him into his quarters. Then she rushed and hugged him.  
  
" Thank you! Can I go see Anakin please?" she asked sounding distraught. Obi-wan could sense that she was in desperate need of comforting and everyone knew that only Anakin could calm this child when she got upset - thought only a few people knew why.  
  
" Yes go," Obi-wan said and she ran off to his room. She didn't even signal on the door, she just barged straight in. He was asleep, but her distress, which he could sense through the force woke him up straight away as she lay down next to him shaking.  
  
" Mayco! What's wrong?" Anakin asked and he wrapped his arms around her. It had the instant effect of calming her down a bit. " What happened?"  
  
" Palpatine is evil!" she cried. Anakin frowned and hugged her a little tighter.  
  
" What?" he asked in a light-hearted tone.  
  
" When he was in my room, he was like punishing me, and I got all these visions, all these feelings when he came near me.I could see the future! You're going to die alone, I saw you dying alone, all old and deformed and metal and you were alone! I didn't want to see you alone! It was all fire and burning and panic everywhere and there were people dying everywhere, and there was no Obi-wan, there was no Mace, there was no Jedi!" At this point she broke down and started shaking insanely. " There was no Jedi!" she repeated over and over.  
  
" Where were you?" Anakin asked trying to keep his voice under control, her pain was affecting him seriously.  
  
" I was dead! I was dead! I don't want to die!" the child cried. Anakin hugged her even tighter and he rocked her.  
  
" You are not going to die, I am not letting anything happen to you! Ever!" he said firmly and a tear rolled down his face.  
  
" Yes I will! I'm going to die soon! I know I am! And chancellor Palpatine has something to do with it! He's so evil Anakin, he's so evil!" she cried passionately. Anakin gulped and closed his eyes - he didn't want to hear this, he didn't want to know this. Her premonitions were usually very accurate.  
  
" How are we going to lose all the Jedi?" Anakin asked.  
  
" The Sith are going to kill them!" she cried.  
  
* * *  
  
More to follow soon.  
  
Thank you for taking the time to read it! And I'm REALLY sorry if Mayco turned out to be a little bit Mary Sue 


	2. Shadows of the future

The End  
  
Shadows of the future  
  
".I could see the future! You're going to die alone, I saw you dying alone, all old and deformed and metal and you were alone! I didn't want to see you alone! It was all fire and burning and panic everywhere and there were people dying everywhere, and there was no Obi-wan, there was no Mace, there was no Jedi!" At this point she broke down and started shaking insanely. " There was no Jedi!" she repeated over and over.  
  
" Where were you?" Anakin asked trying to keep his voice under control, her pain was affecting him seriously.  
  
" I was dead! I was dead! I don't want to die!" the child cried. Anakin hugged her even tighter and he rocked her.  
  
" You are not going to die, I am not letting anything happen to you! Ever!" he said firmly and a tear rolled down his face.  
  
" Yes I will! I'm going to die soon! I know I am! And chancellor Palpatine has something to do with it! He's so evil Anakin, he's so evil!" she cried passionately. Anakin gulped and closed his eyes - he didn't want to hear this, he didn't want to know this. Her premonitions were usually very accurate.  
  
" How are we going to lose all the Jedi?" Anakin asked.  
  
" The Sith are going to kill them!" she cried.  
  
" What all of them?"  
  
" Yes," she cried and she fully broke down. unable to talk about it any more. Anakin gulped and held her tightly till she fell asleep, she was already much calmer now and he focused all his energy on soothing her. Then, when he sensed that she was totally calm again, he focused on getting to sleep himself.  
  
* * *  
  
The next day Mayco woke before Anakin and she climbed quietly out of bed and left his room. Obi-wan was cooking breakfast in the kitchen.  
  
" Good morning Mayco, how are you feeling today?" Obi-wan asked sitting the girl down at the table and placing his hand protectively on her head.  
  
" Better thank you," she said.  
  
" Do you want some breakfast?" Obi-wan asked and Mayco nodded enthusiastically as he dished out some of the meat he'd been frying. Then he put the toast on the table and the hard-boiled eggs. " Help yourself," he said and she dug in, chatting enthusiastically to him about the trip they were going to take. Soon enough Anakin woke up and came through fully dressed. He walked over to them and stood between them, smiling broadly (this was his ideal situation, a real family life with his daughter at his side) and to his surprise Mayco lunged at him and hugged his waist.  
  
" Thank you for last night," she said. Anakin ruffled her hair with his hand.  
  
" You're welcome kid," he said and he joined them at the table, still smiling at the familiarity of it all. " So what are you going to do the next few days?"  
  
" Try to do some good deeds I guess." Mayco muttered grimly.  
  
* * *  
  
" Mayco, sweetheart, did you really have to put him all the way on the fifth pillar, I mean couldn't you have just sufficed with one of the lower ones so he could jump down?" Obi-wan asked patiently, a slight smile pulling at his face. Mayco turned to glare at him and shook her head.  
  
" That was not my fault!" she hissed, thrusting her finger back in the direction of the chaos she had just caused. " Like it's my fault that guy chose us, out of everyone out here us to pick pocket! He nearly got hold of Kito! I love that little guy!" Anakin grinned at Obi-wan over his warm drink. Kito had been the first cuddly toy Mayco had ever received, and it had been from Anakin on her first birthday.  
  
" I doubt that he would have kept hold of Kito when he saw the disgusting brown colour he's turned," Obi-wan said smiling back at Anakin. Mayco's jaw dropped.  
  
" Hey! He's great! Kito is the cutest little.brown.thing ever! And anyway, that guy had it coming," she said rebelliously, but then her stubborn expression turned into one of mischief. " And besides, it's really funny watching those guys trying to get him down, you guys should watch! Look!"  
  
" Well I for one must say that your behaviour over the last few days has been despicable," Obi-wan said sternly. Mayco shrugged her shoulders.  
  
" Yeah, well my plan was that if the council thought I was badder without Tio then they'd get us back together," she said triumphantly, throwing down the remains of the awful tasting café made toast sandwich.  
  
" Badder isn't even a word!" Anakin chuckled. " I mean come on kid, if you're going to make a stand at least."  
  
" Hey our transport is boarding!" Mayco suddenly said pointing at the huge information screen, showing the port flight details of the incoming and outgoing transports. She jumped to her feet before Obi-wan or Anakin could confirm, grabbed her duffel bag and ran off in the direction of the hanger.  
  
" Mayco, get your little locomotionally challenged butt back here!" Anakin yelled into the crowd and within moments Mayco was back.  
  
" Locomotionally challenged?" she asked with an incredulous look on her face.  
  
" Well yeah, as in you don't know how to walk at a good pace in public," Anakin explained. Mayco continued to stare at him incredulously. " What that was funny!" Mayco shook her head. " Master, that was funny right?" But he never got his answer as both Obi-wan and Mayco were laughing and walking away from him. " Guys come on!" He smiled to himself, picked up his own duffel bag, and followed the laughing pair through the crowds.  
  
* * *  
  
" Is that them?" a deep threatening voice asked through the darkness overlooking the port lobby.  
  
" Yes," came the reply. " You watch them closely.you watch them very closely. Without them, all this will be for nothing, and my master will be very unhappy!"  
  
" Understood boss, understood."  
  
* * *  
  
" What time will they arrive Aunt Padme?" Padme pulled away from the window and smiled at the young girl.  
  
" Soon Pooja, soon. Master Kenobi contacted me earlier today to tell me that they would arrive this evening," Padme told her niece.  
  
" I can't wait to meet them, real live people from Coruscant and one of them is a kid!" Pooja said wistfully, in her twelve years of existence, she'd rarely been given the chance to play with children from other worlds.  
  
" As apposed to not real live people?" Padme asked chuckling.  
  
" No silly, like droids and stuff! They come out here from Coruscant all the time, but people, that's so different!" the girl protested, losing her peaceful demeanour for a moment, before her dreamy look returned.  
  
" Oh," Padme laughed. " Well remember Pooja, Mayco is very.special to the Jedi and to Master Kenobi and his apprentice, so you can only take her to safe places where there are a lot of people!" The young girl nodded knowingly, she was tired of hearing this speech over and over.  
  
" Yeah but what I don't understand is if she's like training to be a Jedi, then surely she could take anyone on right?"  
  
" Pooja," Padme warned. " Don't get any ideas! Mayco is only eight-years- old, she's too young to 'take anyone on'!" she said feeling apprehensive.  
  
" But everyone's heard about her, she's apparently the most amazing kid they've ever had at the temple! Yoda is like her personal mentor and she can do almost everything he can!" Pooja said dreamily.  
  
" Pooja, Mayco is powerful yes! But her combat training in real live situations has been limited; she needs to be prepared for it. Don't put her in any dangerous situations, or the Jedi may never take her back to visit Naboo," Padme said firmly. Pooja gave her a defiant stare, but then smiled childishly.  
  
" Okay," she said sighing dramatically, but her eyes were smiling. Padme nodded and smiled back at her niece, praying to her Gods that Mayco's visit would go by uneventfully.  
  
* * *  
  
The transport landed on time, and the small cloaked party made their way quickly through the port to the arrival lobby where they were being met by a representative of the senator, who would be taking them to their hotel, and then on to lunch with the senator. They found the representative quickly and he led them out of the port and out onto the streets of the beautiful capitol. It was a short, but enjoyable walk to their hotel and once they got there Obi-wan spoke to the man in the lobby, and eventually got the keys off him. They would all have their own rooms, but Mayco's would have a door leading into Obi-wan's. After dropping off their bags they once again set off into the city, this time riding by carriage to the restaurant.  
  
" Now remember Mayco, you are to be on your best behaviour, you are representing all the children at the temple!" Obi-wan warned. Mayco rolled her eyes and nodded tiredly.  
  
" And don't go leading Senator Amidala's niece astray either," Anakin added grinning at Mayco cheerfully.  
  
" What?" Mayco cried innocently. " Like I would do such a thing! I'd be more worried about you guys getting us into trouble than me! At least what I do is innocent fun, you guys are the ones that land us in major problems remember?" she complained.  
  
" You? Innocent?" Anakin laughed, but he dropped the matter, this was supposed to be an enjoyable trip, he didn't want Mayco to get sulky before she met her mother. Padme.Anakin's thoughts strayed to his wife and he smiled, oh how he hated their secret union. He missed her so much when he was away from her.  
  
" Why are you getting so emotional?" Mayco suddenly asked him, giving him an amused look. Obi-wan flashed Anakin a warning smile, Mayco was getting too good at picking up on people's emotions.  
  
" Padme's a very good friend, I look forward to seeing her again," he said truthfully. Mayco continued to stare at him, aware that he was hiding something, but eventually she let it drop. This worried Obi-wan, if she could pick up so easily on Anakin's emotions, then Padme's emotions would be easier to read. He hated this insecurity, this trip was such a bad idea, they were putting too much at risk, they had too much to lose!  
  
Their journey only lasted a few more minutes, and the carriage then pulled up a drive to a beautifully archaic building. The party thanked the driver and were led into the building. Several people were dining and their guide led them through all the tables to a sectioned off area. Here he left them and they cautiously made their way past the screen. Sitting there in all her glory was Padme, surrounded by her family. Anakin beamed at her.  
  
" Anakin, Master Kenobi," she called to them and she stood up and rushed over to them, greeting them enthusiastically. " It is so good to see you again!" She exchanged an apprehensive glance with Anakin before turning her attention on Mayco. " And Mayco, it is good to see you again," she said in a slightly strangled tone, the emotion at seeing her daughter again was almost too much. Mayco smiled warmly.  
  
" It's good to be back," she said in a charming way. Padme smiled at her, feeling tears stinging her eyes, so she pulled away again and stood back.  
  
" I'd like you to meet my sister Sola, her husband Tobas and their children Ryoo and Pooja and my parents Jobal and Ruwee," she said happily. Then she turned on her family. " This is Master Obi-wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker and Mayco Naberrie." The family looked surprised.  
  
" Oh you share our last name, do you have relatives on Naboo?" Jobal asked Mayco. Mayco stared at her thoughtfully for a moment and then up at Obi- wan.  
  
" Do I?" she asked interestedly. Obi-wan and Anakin laughed.  
  
" We don't know," he said, hoping the child would be satisfied. Luckily, she knew how to behave in situations like this and she let the matter drop, but no doubt, later on she would bring it up again. There was an awkward silence, in which Mayco grew slightly alarmed by how emotional the senator was feeling towards herself. She was very confused by what was going on. She could sense a big secret was being kept by people in this room, but she had no idea how it could relate to herself.  
  
" Please sit down," Padme eventually said and the party sat down at the table; Mayco finding herself next to her designated companion Pooja and Obi- wan. As a general chatter filled the table Pooja felt confidant enough to speak to this child legend sitting next to her.  
  
" Hey," she said trying to sound cool. Mayco could sense the unease in her companion.  
  
" Hey," she replied cheerfully and she grinned cheekily at her. This put Pooja at ease.  
  
" So do you really train with Master Yoda?" With this the ice was broken and the pair got into an animated conversation about training, mediation, foods and just about everything in the Jedi world. Pooja was fascinated and neither child noticed when silence fell over the table for Padme to make a speech. Obi-wan had to clear his throat to get their attention. When they realised their error, Pooja blushed scarlet and hung her head, but Mayco just sniggered at Pooja's reaction, but she fell silent too. Padme smiled fondly at them and then raised her glass.  
  
" I would like to propose a toast for our visitors," she said and everyone raised their glasses. " I hope your stay is enjoyable and that you find what you came here to find," she said smiling at the visitors. With this she took her seat and Obi-wan took to his feet and wished Padme and her family the very best of health. Once all the formalities were over with, Padme started explaining what she had planned for her guests, and Mayco was thrilled to find out that in a few days they would be travelling to the lakeside retreat that Anakin had told her about so much in her bedtime stories. For the rest though, it sounded like this visit was going to include a lot of diplomatic events.  
  
" Don't worry about it," Pooja said when the chatter resumed. Mayco looked at her and raised her eyebrows. " Well it sounds boring right? But don't worry, we don't have to do most of that stuff," Pooja explained. Mayco laughed.  
  
" Maybe you should be a Jedi, it's like you read my mind," she said grinning. She turned back to her food and didn't see how stunned Pooja was looking. Mayco didn't know that she couldn't have bestowed a higher complement on the girl.  
  
* * *  
  
Over the days that followed Mayco and Pooja became good friends. Pooja kept to her word and every day she led Mayco to popular sites around the city, where they usually ran riot instead of taking in the breathtaking sites of the city.  
  
On the fourth day Pooja took her deep into the heart of the city to show her some fun places to run riot. They walked for hours in the midday heat, apparently oblivious to the fact that they were being followed. Deep down though Mayco felt very uneasy, she could sense a strange disturbance in the force, one that she had never felt before and even though it was unnerving, it was still so intriguing all the same.  
  
Every now and then she would stop in her tracks and spin around, expecting to see what was causing the disturbance, but not once did she see anything out of the ordinary.  
  
" Why do you keep doing that?" Pooja asked as Mayco spun round for the tenth time or so. Mayco frowned at the empty alley and looked at Pooja again.  
  
" I feel a disturbance in the force, and it's getting so strong!" she explained. " I don't think that we should be here, let's go back to a more crowded area." Pooja nodded, but she felt deeply disappointed. Up till now, Mayco had been this fearless champion in her eyes; this was so.disappointing.  
  
The two girls headed back, Mayco's feelings growing more and more erratic as this unknown entity got closer and closer. Suddenly Mayco's fears skyrocketed and she pulled her lightsaber out and jumped around the alleyway expecting trouble.  
  
" Look!" Pooja suddenly yelled, pointing down to the end of the alleyway at a cloaked figure. It was approaching them at a painfully slow pace, but either way both girls broke into a run.  
  
* * *  
  
Whereas the children spent their time causing havoc across the city, Obi- wan and Anakin spent most of their time with the Senator. They had no real diplomatic reason to be here, and instead the enjoyed fine food and entertainment, while thinking of this excursion as a well-earned holiday.  
  
On the day in question the three of them were taking a walk through the botanical gardens of the palace. They were fondly reliving old times when they heard footsteps running up behind them.  
  
" Aunt Padme! It's Mayco!" Pooja yelled. All three adults spun round with varying degrees of distress. Obi-wan, who had responded the calmest, put his hand on the panicking child and she calmed down slightly.  
  
" Tell me what has happened?" he asked seriously.  
  
" We were in this alleyway and Mayco started getting really worried about something, she kept on like jumping round, thinking something was behind us. Then she got really scared and she pulled out her lightsaber.that's when I saw it. It was huge and it had a big cloak on!" she spurted out, tears forming in her eyes. " Then we started running and that's all I can remember, next thing I know I was on the floor and Mayco and this thing weren't anywhere! I don't know what's happened to her!"  
  
Obi-wan smiled kindly at the girl and then straightened up to face his apprentice. Anakin looked very close to losing it and he was glaring at Pooja with such ferocity that the girl gave out a terrified noise and ran for it.  
  
" Anakin you need to control your emotions if we are to help Mayco," Obi- wan said firmly.  
  
" We wouldn't have to if it hadn't have been for." Anakin began venomously.  
  
" Well we do have to," Obi-wan cut in coolly. " So gather your wits about you, we're leaving!" With this Obi-wan stalked off down the path leaving Anakin fuming.  
  
" Listen to him Ani," Padme said, emotion causing her voice to stutter. " You have to find her! You just have to!"  
  
Anakin looked up to see tears streaming down her face. Seeing her in pain made him feel so much worse, but he knew she was right. So he nodded and leaned forward and kissed her cheek.  
  
" I will find her Padme, I swear to you!" he said forcefully and he let her go and ran off down the path following Obi-wan leaving Padme with the strongest sense of foreboding she had ever felt.  
  
* * *  
  
I know it's short, but it's a good stopping point till I get the next bit done. 


	3. Ignorance is bliss

The End  
  
Ignorance is bliss  
  
A deafening grinding sound caused Mayco to jerk out of her slumber. She looked around herself and forced herself to keep calm.  
  
'Okay think,' she thought to herself. 'First thing's first, get your bearings!' This was made slightly more difficult by the fact that she was hanging upside down. Her hands were tied together behind her back, and her feet were bound together with the wire that was suspending her. She then realised that her lightsaber was gone.  
  
To get a better view of her surroundings she swung herself up with her legs, so that she could grab the wire behind her back. Now she found herself clutching her ankles, and focusing all her energy on balancing to keep upright, but at least this was she could see everything.  
  
The large room was filled with heavy machinery that was grinding and churning. It appeared to be some sort of warehouse. There was no way of telling if she was still on Naboo, because she didn't have any knowledge of their technology.  
  
Her captor was nowhere in sight, nor could she see any traces of his ever being there, meaning she couldn't gather any insight on who he was.  
  
'One thing's for sure, they're trained in the ways of the force, definitely not female with those powerful arms and seriously in need of a shower!' she told herself, forcing herself to remember every detail of her capture.  
  
The two girls had run for it, but before they'd even taken ten paces Pooja had fallen limp by Mayco's side. Mayco had spun around and found this massive cloaked figure standing inches away from her. It had reached out with its gigantic arms and picked her right up off the floor. An amazing stench had washed over her and then she had felt her head pounding, as if this cloaked figure was hitting her with the Force. The pain had been too much and Mayco had blacked out.  
  
'Come on Mayco, you can remember more!' she thought bitterly, annoyed with herself for being so weak. As she thought this though, her ankles started to ache from the strain of supporting her whole weight. She felt the wire holding her up and realised she could undo it. The question was whether she was high enough from the ground to turn and land on her feet.  
  
'Oh well, we'll soon see' she thought cheerfully and she undid the wires, with a lot of difficulty. The second the started to fall the quickly evened out and stuck her feet out just in time. She then dropped to the floor and spent a long time struggling to get her lower body through her arms so she could get her hands in front of her. Finally she managed and within no time she was free from her restraints.  
  
" Well done," a cold man's voice said from the shadows. Mayco jumped to her feet and edged hesitantly away from the open space where she felt intensely vulnerable. " Though I must say I was expecting you to be a lot quicker," the man drawled on. Mayco stuck her chin defiantly in the air.  
  
" Why don't you come over here and say that," she hissed bitterly. The man laughed, sending a chilling feeling up Mayco's spine. She could feel his presence in the force and he was incredibly strong.  
  
" I like watching you," the man replied simply and she felt him drawing nearer through the force.  
  
" Yeah well I don't, so show yourself!" she ordered.  
  
" As you wish," he said and suddenly a tall figure stepped out of the shadows directly opposite her. He had silver hair and a small beard and there was something oddly familiar about him. One thing was for sure, he was evil, his presence in the force was so dark, it was nearly overwhelming for the small girl.  
  
" Who are you?" she demanded angrily. The man smiled and took a few paces closer to her; now Mayco saw her lightsaber hanging at his felt next to his own, very strangely shaped lightsaber. In an instance she knew who he was. " Count Dooku," she gasped. Obi-wan and Anakin had told her countless bedtime stories about this man. He was Sith, he was evil!  
  
" Yes," he said simply and he smiled at her.  
  
" Why haven't you killed me?" Mayco asked more bravely than she felt.  
  
" I have no intention of killing you, you are too important to us," he replied, edging even closer still. Mayco felt an instant feeling of relief, mixed with complete curiosity.  
  
" Who's us?"  
  
Count Dooku smiled and held his hand out to her. She frowned, but moved tentatively towards him. To her absolute surprise he held out her lightsaber. She snatched it out of his hand.  
  
" There is no need for you to know that," he said kindly. " See I have returned your lightsaber to you, you can calm down, I am not going to hurt you, but if you make a run for it, then I will." Mayco frowned cockily.  
  
" What if I beat you?" she asked defiantly. " What if I kill you? The Jedi would no longer be in danger, I would be a hero!" Count Dooku nodded.  
  
" Only until my master found another apprentice," he said darkly. " And then they would torture you young Mayco. And also, do not think that you would stand a chance beating me, you may be Yoda's pet, but there are those who can beat Yoda."  
  
" Yeah and you're not one of them," Mayco hissed angrily. Dooku smiled.  
  
" Tut tut tut Mayco, you obviously haven't learnt how to control your emotions yet. You should be careful," Dooku said cheerfully. " Then again your precious father never learnt how to control his emotions and soon he will be with us."  
  
" What?" Mayco asked, horror filling her face, this man knew her father? Her father was evil? Dooku smiled slyly.  
  
" Oh that's right, you don't know," he said cheerfully.  
  
" Know what?" Mayco demanded angrily. Dooku simply shrugged.  
  
" About the great plans that we have in stall for your father."  
  
" I don't even know my father!" Mayco yelled, her feelings culminating in rage. " So you can do what you want to him, I don't care! He abandoned me, so you can kill him for all I care!"  
  
Dooku smiled and nodded.  
  
" We'll see."  
  
* * *  
  
Hours passed, maybe even a few days, Mayco didn't care. She refused food, she refused water, and she passed into a meditation like state. She focused all her energy on searching out for Anakin and Obi-wan. They would undoubtedly be searching for her, but either she was very far away, or they were dead, because she couldn't sense them. Dooku rarely left her side, always watching her. He sometimes attempted to engage her in conversation again, but without success. The times he did leave, he would tie her up again and most of the time it took her the whole time of his absence to free herself. Sometimes she didn't bother, she somehow realised this was all a game to him. He was biding his time, waiting for something.  
  
It only became apparent what that something was when a familiar presence entered Mayco's conscience. She snapped out of her meditation and looked around. It was familiar, yet so very different.so very evil!  
  
Dooku also felt the presence, because he suddenly got to his feet and looked happy with himself. Mayco also clambered to her feet and placed one hand on her lightsaber.  
  
Just when the presence was so strong that Mayco could have sworn whoever it was must have been invisible and was standing right next to her; a cloaked man edged his way out of the shadows. Mayco stared at him in terror, for some reason she was terrified of him.  
  
" Count Dooku," the man croaked, giving Mayco the distinct impression that he was more ancient that anyone she had ever met. " Well done, you have done well." Count Dooku nodded proudly.  
  
" Thank you master," he said calmly. The cloaked figure then rounded on Mayco and stared at her for a while. Mayco had the uncomfortable impression that he was probing her mind, but then all of a sudden her head started burning and she dropped to the floor in pain.  
  
Images started filling her head, images of a battle, these two Sith lords and.Anakin.and he was in pain, he was dying!  
  
" No!" Mayco cried out. The images stopped coming and the Sith master turned back to Count Dooku.  
  
" There has been a change of plan," the master said softly. " Let her return to the Jedi, she is no use to us now," he said. Dooku was obviously disappointed, but he nodded all the same.  
  
" Yes master." The Sith master nodded his head to him and hobbled back into the shadows. As his presence started waning away Mayco's head started feeling better, leaving her shaking with emotion and fear, but also feeling determined, whatever it cost, she was not going to let that vision come true, even if it meant that she had to die trying!  
  
* * *  
  
" Oh it's no use!" Anakin shouted into the deserted street. " We've been looking for three days, she is not in the capitol!"  
  
" Keep calm Anakin, you're clouding your judgement with emotion," Obi-wan said firmly. Anakin looked like he wanted to punch Obi-wan, but he knew he was right, and started to force himself to calm down.  
  
" I don't understand how we didn't see this coming, why couldn't I feel her distress when they were in that alleyway?" Anakin asked eventually as the pair climbed back in their speeder.  
  
" Perhaps because your mind was preoccupied with the joy of being reunited with Padme again," Obi-wan suggested. " Don't blame yourself Anakin, this is not your fault!" Anakin nodded.  
  
" I just want." he began, but then all of a sudden he looked up and frowned. " Did you."  
  
" I felt it too," Obi-wan suddenly said, and sure enough, there it was again. Mayco's presence, she wasn't nearby, but she was definitely in the capitol. Anakin instantly started the speeder and the men raced off, following the force to bring them to her. They travelled for a long time, crossing from one side of the giant city to the other, all the while Mayco's strong steady presence growing clearer.  
  
She wasn't hard to find. As they rounded a corner onto a long street they saw her in the distance, sprinting towards them, she had evidently felt them coming also. When they reached her side Anakin leapt out of the speeder and Mayco threw herself at him so powerfully that she nearly threw him to the ground. She greeted Obi-wan with a similarly powerful embrace, but then she let him go and looked up at them.  
  
" I met the Sith," she said simply. " There's two of them, Dooku and his master. His master let me go, saying there was no use for me yet," she explained quickly. She didn't want to tell them everything, but this was enough. With this they climbed back in the speeder and raced back to their hotel where Padme was waiting. She had been staying with them for the last few days, too worried to leave them.  
  
She ran out into the corridor when she heard them coming and nearly cried out with joy when she saw that Mayco was with them, but she restrained herself and simply stroked Mayco's hair.  
  
" It's good to see you're okay Mayco, you had us all very worried," she said, managing excellently to keep her emotion out of her voice.  
  
" I'm sorry Senator," Mayco said and she followed Obi-wan and Anakin to the communications device in their room.  
  
" I'm sorry we're going to have to cut our visit short, it's imperative that we get Mayco back to the temple," Obi-wan said. Padme looked visibly disappointed. Anakin saw.  
  
" Perhaps the Senator could come with us to Coruscant," he said and Obi-wan looked at him furrowing his brow, wondering where this was going.  
  
" Hey that's a cool idea," Mayco said quickly, eager to show off her skills to the Senator at the temple. Obi-wan frowned and nodded.  
  
" You will have to ask the council," he said and they sent a transmission to the temple explaining what had happened and requesting if Senator Amidala could return with them. Within moments the council replied and demanded that Mayco be returned to the temple, and that they would be delighted if the Senator came for a visit.  
  
* * *  
  
The group reached the temple a few days later. Mayco was instantly brought in front of the council and she told them a very sparse version of her story, hiding what Dooku had said about her father and about the vision she had seen. Only Yoda seemed to notice she was hiding something.  
  
" Nothing else you have to tell?" he asked. Mayco held her head up proudly.  
  
" No master Yoda," she said emotionlessly, her mind devoid of her memories. Yoda gave her a calculating look, but eventually nodded.  
  
" Return to your training immediately you must," he said. Then he looked at Mace and nodded to him.  
  
" Given the gravity of this situation, and the experience you've been through, we are permitting you to move back into your old quarters with Miss Al'lin," Mace said, and he suppressed a smile when he felt Mayco's frustration at wanting to jump up and down cheering, but having to restrain herself. " We have already had your belongings moved. Miss Al'lin is waiting for you in your quarters," he said. Mayco looked at him expectantly. " Yes you may go," he said and Mayco turned on heel and rushed to the door. " But Mayco!" She turned and literally hopped from one foot to the other in excitement. " Any more trouble out of you and you've had it!" She nodded again and she ran out of the room.  
  
She might have well flown down the corridors with the speed she was going, because soon she reached her door and she charged into her room. Tio was indeed waiting there for her looking less than happy. Mayco frowned and stopped at the door.  
  
" What's up with you?" she asked, but Tio simply nodded her head, indicating Mayco to turn around. Mayco frowned, but did as Tio told her and she turned around. Where there had once only been two beds, there were now three and sat upon the one in the middle was. . .  
  
" Anis?" Mayco gabbled incredulously. Anis grinned and jumped to her feet.  
  
" Hi roomie! Welcome back!" she said and she embraced Mayco powerfully. Mayco gasped and pulled away.  
  
" Roomie?" she spluttered giving Tio a terrified look.  
  
" Yeah the council asked if I wouldn't mind moving in here with you guys, because everyone knows how much you two love trouble. So I felt obliged to keep you on the straight and narrow," she said in a sickeningly cheerful tone. Mayco still stared at her dumbstruck. " Well say something silly, you look like a drellik that's been left out in the rain for too long," Anis said. Mayco held her hand to her mouth and resisted the urge to vomit.  
  
" What?" Tio demanded angrily.  
  
" What don't you know that saying?" Anis asked frowning, unaware that these two had no idea that a drellik was a cow-like animal that hated rain. On her home planet they were the main source of wealth.  
  
" No! So don't ever use it again!" Tio hissed bitterly. Anis laughed uneasily.  
  
" Okay roomie," she then said cheerfully.  
  
" And stop calling us that!" Tio exclaimed angrily. To Mayco's horror Anis shook her finger warningly at Tio.  
  
" Now now Tio, you know you have to control your temper, I'm going to have to go tell Master Uvek about this," she said and she waltzed out. Mayco just stared numbly at the door as Tio jumped up and slammed the controls, locking it.  
  
" I have had to put up with her all day!" she hissed angrily. " It's all Master Uvek this, Master Uvek that! Oh no, you didn't fold your shirt properly, I'm going to have to run and tell Master Uvek that you're stepping out of line again because I'm a nansy-brained MORON!" she shouted imitating the girl angrily. Mayco snapped out of her daze and suppressed her laughter at Tio's outburst, which probably wouldn't go down well.  
  
" So um, who's Master Uvek?" Mayco asked curiously when she couldn't think of anything else to say.  
  
" It's this Jedi who's been given the responsibility of keeping us in check, she's a real.nightmare! Just think of a grown up version of Anis, only a million times worse! So basically anything we do, Anis goes and tells her and then we get in trouble! Forget separation, even torture is better than this!" Tio explained gruffly. Then she jumped to her feet and hugged Mayco roughly round the neck. " I am so happy to see you though!" Mayco coughed a little and Tio quickly let go. " Sorry, I think she has actually driven me a little crazy!"  
  
Mayco grinned.  
  
" You know it'll be okay, seriously, I even think we can have some fun with this," Mayco said cheerfully, dumping her duffle bag down on her bed and unpacking it. Tio smiled tiredly.  
  
" Whatever you say man, but living with her is going to be like living with Monitor Shari or something like that!" she said sadly. Mayco grinned and shook her head.  
  
" No don't worry, it's going to be cool!"  
  
* * *  
  
" She a nightmare!" Mayco cried out angrily. Anakin and Obi-wan looked to each other in an amused way as Mayco and Tio continued to shout abuse about their new roommate. They had taken to hiding in Anakin and Obi-wan's chambers to get away from Anis, who after only two days had driven them both to the point of near-insanity.  
  
" The council feel it's best that." Obi-wan began.  
  
" Yeah well the council can just sod off!" Tio hissed.  
  
" Tio!" Obi-wan warned, but he was smiling.  
  
" Sorry Master Kenobi, but she's a nightmare! I'd like to see anyone from the council putting up with her!" she grumbled.  
  
" They couldn't, I bet no one could, she's like the most ultimate weapon ever, after two days of her the enemy would be slitting their own wrists for some release!" Mayco added angrily.  
  
" Oh come on she can't be that bad." Mayco and Tio spun round and found Senator Amidala standing in the doorway. They both instantly felt embarrassed at their outburst and they looked sheepishly to the ground.  
  
" She is," Mayco said softly. Padme smiled at the men and they shook their heads; best not to continue with this conversation.  
  
" Mayco I was wondering if you would do me the honour of letting me watch your training with Master Yoda this afternoon?" Padme asked. Mayco grinned happily and nodded quickly.  
  
" Yeah of course you can watch!" she said. " It would be my pleasure!" Padme beamed at her.  
  
" Thank you, shall we go?" she asked and Mayco looked at the time, realising that her lunch hour had gone by so quickly and that most of it had been spent trying to get away from Anis.  
  
" Yeah sure," she said and she bade goodbye to Tio, who had combat training of her own to get to with the rest of their class. To Mayco's surprise Anakin and Obi-wan came along with them too.  
  
" You guys watching too?" she asked them and they nodded good-naturedly. Soon they reached the training garden - a circular indoor garden spanning five floors, with windows on the top four floors looking down into the magnificent area. Mayco bade goodbye to the others as she went into the garden. She stood waiting alone, watching a butterfly absent-mindedly while her audience made their way to the second floor to watch from one of floor- to-ceiling windows. She waved to them and then the main door opened.  
  
Mayco bowed to master Yoda as he stood in front of her. He bowed back, then all of a sudden he lurched into action.  
  
* * *  
  
From above Padme watched in awe. Mayco was amazing to watch; her daughter was amazing! Yoda was evidently faster and more experienced, but Mayco was definitely holding her own.  
  
" I had no idea she was this good, you never told me," she told the men. Anakin smiled from beside her and nodded.  
  
" It's hard to put into words how good she is, you simply have to see it," Obi-wan said from the other side of Anakin.  
  
The group watched for the whole hour of Mayco's training. Until finally, as if on cue both Mayco and Yoda dropped to the ground and face each other.  
  
" Is that it?" Padme asked sounding disappointed.  
  
" Not quite," a voice said from behind them.  
  
* * *  
  
Mayco stood proudly. She was panting and exhausted, but she was proud. She had demonstrated her talents, she had demonstrated her raw supremacy and she had demonstrated why she was considered legendary at the temple. She wiped the sweat off her brow with her towelled wristband and then bowed to Master Yoda. He bowed his head back to her and then shuffled out of the room. Mayco watched him leave and was practically through the door leading to the changing room when the main entrance to the garden opened. A strange tremor in the force made Mayco stop and turn to face none other than Chancellor Palpatine. Mayco swallowed hard and stared him down.  
  
" Miss Naberrie," he said smiling slyly at her.  
  
" Sir," she replied nodding her head to him. " Uh.sir would it be okay if I went and changed?" Palpatine stared at her with a shrewd calculating look.  
  
" Of course you may leave if you wish," he said coldly. " But I have a proposition for you!" Mayco stayed silent, and the Chancellor continued, slightly put out by her lack of enthusiasm. " I would like to see you battle in a slightly more demanding scenario, and if you complete the scenario to my satisfaction then I will make great things happen for you," he explained simply. Mayco looked away contemplating what he'd said. How could any scenario be more challenging than a one-on-one battle with Yoda? But the thought of a challenge did intrigue her, and the idea of showing off more in front of Senator Amidala was tempting. The only thing that worried her was his promise of great things, she didn't trust him, but after a few moments' thought, the pros won over the cons.  
  
" Okay, I'll do it," she said returning her gaze to the chancellor. He smiled wryly and held out his hand.  
  
" Good, give me your lightsaber?"  
  
" Excuse me?" Mayco stammered, her lightsaber was her source of confidence, without that she felt horribly vulnerable.  
  
" In return for this," he said holding out a blaster. Mayco raised her eyebrows sceptically.  
  
" Okay," she eventually mumbled and she exchanged her precious blade for the clumsy blaster.  
  
" Good luck," was all the chancellor said before he retreated from the combat garden. As he left every door in the chamber opened and hundreds upon hundreds of battle droids marched into the room, followed by hundreds of training remotes, all taking aim at Mayco. After at least a thousand had entered the room the steel lock-doors flew down and Mayco was surrounded in a trapped room. She looked around calmly, but inside she was panicking slightly, this was surely impossible? She stood still as a statue waiting for further instruction, but none came.  
  
" What I'm supposed to fight all these guys?" she called into the room. She waited in silence for a few moments, getting slightly edgy, crossing her arms and looking around herself nervously.  
  
" Mayco don't move," Obi-wan's voice finally blared out over the speaker in the chamber. Mayco frowned, but did as she was told.  
  
Meanwhile outside Obi-wan, Anakin and Master Windu had surrounded Palpatine and were asking in hassled tones exactly what he was playing at. None of them were giving him a chance to speak, each was furious with this dangerous act. They weren't getting anywhere until Yoda cleared his throat from behind them. All four men turned to see him standing next to Senator Amidala.  
  
" Listen to him you must," he said firmly to the Jedi, but he gave Palpatine a calculating look all the same. Palpatine nodded to Yoda and took a step away from the angry looking men.  
  
" Why have you put her in this dangerous situation? You must understand that she is too young to handle all those droids? Such a task would be very difficult for a fully trained Jedi," Master Windu demanded.  
  
" She is eight years old!" Anakin cried out, unable to hide his passion. " If anything happens to my daughter." he began in a threatening tone.  
  
" Nothing is going to happen to her Skywalker," Palpatine interrupted in a blasé tone. " I have complete faith in her abilities!"  
  
" Why does she have to prove them to you anyway?" Obi-wan asked calmly. Palpatine nodded slowly.  
  
" I require a personal guard who is extremely gifted, and for a long time I have been interested in Miss Naberrie's abilities!" he explained.  
  
" A personal guard?" Anakin asked incredulously. " She's destined for greater things than that!"  
  
" Ani!" Padme gasped, amazed by how his temper and his passion could get ahead of him. " I am worried for our daughter too, but maybe we should trust the chancellor's judgement," she said trying to build the peace, ever the diplomat.  
  
" Thank you senator," Palpatine said nodding to her. Then he turned expectantly on Yoda. " Do I have your permission to continue with the trial Master Yoda?" he asked slyly.  
  
After several minutes' careful consideration, Yoda nodded his head slowly.  
  
" Proceed," he said and he started walking off.  
  
" This is a mistake!" Anakin yelled at the group. " She's going to be killed in this insane stunt!" With this he ran in the opposite direction to Yoda.  
  
He eventually stopped running when he reached a small secluded view port into the chamber below, from here he could see his precious Mayco, still standing alert between all the droids. He leant against the wall next to the glass and slid down it, pulling his knees up to his chest for comfort. Anakin had never felt so afraid, the night that Mayco had told him about her vision was clear in his mind. What if this was the event she had been talking about? What if she was going to die?  
  
" Then the chancellor will have to pay," Anakin suddenly spat out, unable to control his feelings anymore.  
  
Mayco must have sensed his pain, because she looked directly at him, even though she couldn't see through the tinted windows. Anakin felt tears sting his eyes as he watched her. He felt fear and pain in her too. His feelings were upsetting her so profoundly; that it stirred his memory to the day he had very reluctantly given her away.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Anakin stared down at the bundle in his arms. Only a day old, and yet already a beautiful baby. She had the largest blue eyes he'd ever seen on a human and a full head of white/blonde hair. She'd undergone all the tests and it was clear that she was very force sensitive, her midichlorian count, like his own, was off the scale, that's how powerful she was. He could feel her presence in the force, it was strong and warm and he could sense her feelings and emotions, she was happy and secure and she felt safe and protected. He was already in love with her, his precious child.a child he would never be able to call his own. She was being taken away of course, to be raised at the temple, and she would never know who he was, or who her mother was. The very thought of giving this baby away was heart breaking. As he thought this she smiled up at him. She knew now who he was; he could sense that she knew she belonged to him, and that he was hers. She could not know that they were about to lose each other forever.  
  
" That's right," Anakin said softly and he sat down bringing the bundle closer. " I'm your father," he said. As he said this a tiny hand reached out and clasped around his little finger. Anakin felt a stab of pain as he lifted his hand up slightly and kissed her tiny fingers, so small and yet perfectly formed. He wondered now if this was how his mother felt when she gave him up. No.she would feel a hundred times worse. Anakin had only known his daughter a day, when his mother had known him nine years. The child.no.his daughter's emotions were changing; she was beginning to feel anxious with her father's change in mood. Anakin cupped her head with his hands and stared into her eyes. " I'm sorry," he said, holding back tears. " But I can't keep you! You're mine, and I can't keep you! You'll never know who I am, but please, you have to understand that I will always love you, and I will always be there for you, but this is the last time I'll hold you, the last time I can call you mine," he managed and he felt a tear escape from his eye. It landed on the girl's forehead and she flinched, but then looked up at Anakin again. Her emotions were loud and clear, she trusted him, she thought that as long as he was with her, she'd be fine.but she was being taken away.now!  
  
The door opened and four people walked in; Yoda, Mace Windu, Obi Wan and Charelle (the woman in charge of the infants at the temple).  
  
" It's time Anakin," Obi-wan said gravely. Anakin turned back desperately to the bundle in his arms. The baby girl looked close to tears, she could feel the torment raging away in her father and it was upsetting her. Somehow she was aware that she was losing him.she began to cry. Anakin felt any happiness drain from him as he heard her cries and he pulled her to his chest. He could feel that she was in agony and he couldn't comfort her.he was giving her away.giving up this precious child.  
  
He stood up and walked over to the Jedi Masters and faced them. Then he handed his child over to Charelle. The instant she was out of his arms the baby began to scream and kick and Anakin ached to hold her again, but he knew he mustn't, he'd never let her go if he held her again. Charelle was about to turn and go.  
  
" Wait!" Anakin said and he felt in the pocket of his cloak for the lightsaber handle he had made for her, he hoped someday she would complete it with the crystals. He placed it on top of the struggling child. " I want her to have this," he said coldly. Charelle nodded.  
  
" Does she have a name?" she asked. Anakin nodded.  
  
" She knows who she is, she'll let you know when she's ready," Anakin said gravely and he turned away from his daughter. Charelle nodded again and she walked out. Mace and Yoda followed; presumably they'd only come along in case there was trouble. The last Anakin saw of his child was a flailing hand, flailing out to reach to him, but it was too late.Mayco was gone, she'd lost her parents from the moment she was born, and Anakin was no longer a father.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Back in the chamber something was stirring in Mayco too, whether it was her own memories, or whether she was picking up on Anakin's she wasn't sure, but she too found herself reliving this day. By the end of the short flashback she felt her heart spin out of control. She remembered!  
  
" Dad," she whispered and she felt Anakin return her shock and surprise for a few seconds before the droids and remotes suddenly lurched into action. She threw herself to the ground, barely missing shower of laserfire that filled the room. She instantly took out the machines around her before she leapt to her feet and used a droid as a shield while she took out even more of them. She was moving to fast too think, acting on pure instinct, letting the force guide her and tell her what to do.  
  
Even as she was battling she knew she was achieving well beyond anyone's expectations. The moves she was pulling off had never been seen in combat before, in this dusty chamber, the young girl was making history. Running up walls, leaping off droids mid-flight, carrying out incredibly complicated and precise alto and spinning flip combinations. She was a human pinball, and a spectacle to watch.  
  
* * *  
  
Anakin watched her, his heart in his mouth. Even he could see that she was amazing, but for every droid she knocked down, he could see a new way for it all going wrong, and even more intense was the realisation that Mayco had figured out who he was. The council were going to be furious, Obi-wan would just about kill him, but even with all this hanging over his head, Anakin was thrilled. His little girl had called him 'dad'. His little girl knew who he was.  
  
" Anakin." Her voice brought instant comfort to his nerves, but he couldn't take his eyes off their daughter.  
  
" Padme," he whispered.  
  
" I know you're scared. I'm scared too," she said softly crouching down in front of him, looking out the window to where their daughter was pulling off some new astounding move.  
  
" It's more than that.Padme," he stammered, desperate to tell his beautiful wife about what had happened, but unclear on how to do it.  
  
" Ani? Something's wrong!" she said softly reaching out and putting her hand on his knee. He felt tears sting his eyes.  
  
" Padme.she knows," he eventually mumbled. Padme furrowed her brow and leaned in a bit.  
  
" Knows about what?" she asked gently.  
  
" Knows about us," he said, and he shuddered from emotion as Mayco took a bad fall. Panic momentarily crossed Padme's face.  
  
" Knows about our marriage?" she asked worriedly, only very few members of the council knew about that and it was imperative that it be kept secret. " Was it my fault, have I been too obvious?" Her face was distraught and Anakin quickly leaned forward and grabbed her hands.  
  
" No." he said slowly. " She knows about who we are. She knows she's our child." Padme gasped and nearly overbalanced, but Anakin pulled her forward into an embrace.  
  
" What are we going to do?" she eventually asked.  
  
" I don't know."  
  
* * *  
  
Half an hour after she had been locked in the chamber with the droids Mayco fell to the floor, panting and battered, but triumphant. The droids and remotes were all destroyed and lying in piles around her. She wiped a thin stream of blood off her forehead, which was dripping into her eye and she threw the blaster down. She stared with hatred at the main entrance door, until it opened revealing the silhouettes of several people standing in the corridor beyond it. Mayco glared at them and stalked forward until she was standing in inches away from Palpatine. She was staring up at him with such malice that Palpatine actually smiled at her.  
  
" Don't you ever do that to me again!" she hissed and she stormed off, feeling her eyes sting, after all that, she was feeling so emotionally drained that she needed to get away. As she walked she heard the corridor erupt with voices, so she broke into a run and ran all the way to the one place where she felt absolutely safe: her room. It was empty of course, the other two were still in their afternoon classes, and even though her memories of this room were now tainted with Anis the nightmare, it was still her sanctuary, still her one safe spot in the entire galaxy.  
  
Her mind was racing as she sat down in her favoured spot, the windowsill. She had discovered so much, too much almost, for her to deal with. Anakin was her father.the senator was her mother? It was so incredible that she couldn't even bring herself to say it, she just started laughing every time, but eventually her laughter turned into tears and she pulled her knees up to her chest and buried her face in them.  
  
" Anakin," she said to herself. " Anakin.why Anakin? Why did he lie to me all that time? How could he lie to me like that?" Her whole life was evaporating before her, the implications of this massive secret hitting her like a ton of bricks: everything was going to change now and somehow it was all the chancellor's fault. How dare he put her through his own personal trials! How dare he test her abilities! If he had never put her in that situation then everything would be different, she would never have found out about her parentage and she could just go on living her life the way she pleased. Ignorance was bliss.  
  
* * *  
  
More to come soon.  
  
Starliz, thank you for your kind reviews of all my stories ( 


	4. Secrets

The end  
  
Secrets  
  
" What do you mean, she knows?" Mace asked slowly. Anakin gave an exasperated sigh, how many times was he going to have to tell these people before they understood.  
  
" What I mean is she knows! She knows about Padme and me, she knows that she's our daughter!" he explained, forcing himself to keep calm.  
  
" But are you absolutely sure?" Obi-wan asked. Anakin glared at him. " Well how did she find out?"  
  
" I was upset, I know I shouldn't let my emotions get the better of me, but I was upset anyway. It made me easy to read, she realised right before she started fighting," Anakin said softly, feeling ashamed of himself for being so feeble when it came to his daughter. Mace exchanged an unreadable look with Obi-wan before finally Yoda spoke.  
  
" Unfortunate this is," he said. " More difficult it will be to train, for both of you." Everyone stared at him in silence. " But lose either of you, we cannot."  
  
" Agreed," Mace said nodding. He then looked at Anakin. " Just for now, try and keep away from her." Anakin was about to protest, but Mace carried on quickly. " Just until she's been given a chance to come to terms with this. It can't be easy!"  
  
" Fine," Anakin finally said and he chewed on the inside of his cheek to restrain himself from saying half the things he wanted to.  
  
" I shall go see Mayco," Mace said and he walked away. Anakin glared at the back of his head. He knew very well that Mayco didn't really like Mace, the only interaction that they ever had was her being brought before him for punishment.  
  
" Anakin you must remain calm!" Obi-wan said firmly. " This is exactly why the council tried to dissuade you from contact with Mayco, you are far to easily affected by things involving her."  
  
" But master I," Anakin began.  
  
" No buts Anakin, your judgment can't be so clouded that you don't see what your relationship with your daughter does to you," Obi-wan countered. Anakin nodded grimly; he knew that Obi-wan was right, but that didn't mean that he liked what he had to say. " We should go and meditate, and you are to leave Mayco to Master Windu," Obi-wan ordered gently and he walked off in the opposite direction that Mace had gone. Anakin breathed in deeply and followed Obi-wan.  
  
* * *  
  
Tio's afternoon had been miserable. Usually during her classes she would sit with her close friends Kara and Breiyden, but ever since Anis had moved in it was like the pair were inseparable, much to Tio's disgust. She had only just managed to get away from the awful girl because she was off briefing Master Uvek on the day's events.  
  
Tio stormed into their room and dumped her bag before she realised Mayco was in the room.  
  
" Hey," Tio grumbled. Mayco ignored her. " I said hey," Tio repeated loudly, getting angry that even Mayco was being strange with her - Kara and Breiyden had deserted her because of Anis.  
  
" What's wrong?" Mayco asked calmly.  
  
" Anis is what's wrong, I swear that I might just start sleep walking and strangle that girl in her sleep," Tio hissed and she jumped up on the windowsill and faced Mayco.  
  
" Might stop the snoring," Mayco suggested softly.  
  
" Oh don't get me started on the snoring! But um, what's up with you?" Tio asked sounding concerned. Mayco shrugged her shoulders weakly.  
  
" I'm not sure if I'm supposed to tell," she said uneasily. Tio scrunched up her face in confusion.  
  
" Tell me what? What's with you? You look like you've seen a ghost! Is it something to do with the Senator watching you today?" Mayco turned away from the window and looked Tio in the eye and then she realised with anger that just because the people she loved could keep horrible big nasty secrets from her, that didn't mean that she was going to do the same thing.  
  
" I found out today that Anakin is my father," she said simply. Tio gasped and tumbled off the windowsill in shock. Within seconds she was back, her jaw hanging open. " And also, that the senator, well yeah, she's my mom!" A silence followed, in which Tio opened and closed her mouth soundlessly. Mayco told her everything, from her strange capture back on Naboo to what had happened in the training garden.  
  
By the end of her story Mayco felt a bit better and Tio had recovered from her shock.  
  
" That's like so, wow! How do you feel?"  
  
" Angry, confused, happy.I don't know, I don't like feeling so many emotions at one time, it makes it really hard to control them! But Tio how could they lie to me? How could Anakin lie to me? All that time and nothing!" Mayco burst out.  
  
" Yeah but you always said you felt strange around him didn't you May? I mean you always knew there was something about him," Tio countered bluntly.  
  
" Yeah I know, but this is so unexpected! I always thought it was something like he was my father's best friend or something relatively normal like that! This is just so.huge!" Mayco complained. " And I don't know how to feel. I don't know what to do!" Tio furrowed her brow in thought.  
  
" Well what about the senator, she's actually your mom!" Tio said in wonderment. Mayco nodded.  
  
" I haven't even thought about her yet," she said softly. Then she jumped off the windowsill quickly. " Hey you think she's still around?" Tio shrugged.  
  
" Yeah why not?"  
  
" Okay cover for me," Mayco said quickly and she ran out of the room leaving Tio sat alone on the windowsill frowning in confusion.  
  
" Cover for you how?" she mumbled, but at this moment the door opened and Anis marched in, her head held up proudly. " Oh it's you!"  
  
" Tio be on your best behaviour, we have company," Anis announced. Tio narrowed her eyes at the girl so much, that she could barely see.  
  
" Who do you think you are my mother?" she demanded angrily and she jumped off the windowsill to face Anis.  
  
" Calm down Tio, I said to be good, we have company!" Anis repeated in a sickeningly sweet tone. Tio was about to yell, but then Master Windu stepped into the room. He was looking at Anis with a look of slight amusement, but also disbelief. This angered Tio more.  
  
'Yeah, see even you people don't know how awful she is, you mighty "we can sense everything" morons' Tio thought angrily. To her surprise Mace smiled and her and she had the horrible feeling that he had heard what she thought. If he had however, he didn't say anything.  
  
" Miss Al'lin good evening," he said cheerfully.  
  
" Good evening sir," Tio replied sheepishly.  
  
" Could you tell me where Miss Naberrie is?" he asked. Tio shook her head, in truth she probably knew where Mayco was, but she wasn't going to land her friend in trouble.  
  
" She wasn't here when I got back, I don't know where she is," Tio said calmly, and she managed to make her voice sound normal at least. Mace lost his smile slightly; he of course knew she was lying.  
  
" Are you sure?" he asked sounding firm. Tio nodded coldly. Mace shook his head and nodded. " Okay, well if you see her, please could you ask her to come see me?" Tio nodded and with this he left.  
  
" You told a lie! It was clear as day!" Anis hissed gleefully. " Oh you told a lie to one of the council, you are going to be in so much trouble!" With this she ran out of the room leaving Tio alone again, yelling furiously into her pillow.  
  
* * *  
  
Mayco's only guess as to where the senator.her mother.would be was her guest quarters. She reached them within ten minutes of leaving her room and sensed something very strange behind the door. There were two strong presences behind that door. Was the senator alone?  
  
Mayco swallowed hard, this was her only chance, if Anakin and Obi-wan were in there, then so be it. She didn't care anymore. So she straightened her shirt and signalled the doorbell.  
  
Moments later the door opened and the senator was standing in the doorway. She looked slightly surprised to see Mayco, but stood aside so Mayco could enter anyway.  
  
The room was empty.  
  
" Hey where did they go?" Mayco asked sounding surprised. Padme moved to the sofa and sat down.  
  
" Where did who go?" she asked nervously, unsure of how the child was going to react to what she had found out.  
  
" Well I felt force sensitive people, strong ones.they were in here, but." Mayco suddenly stopped and stared at the senator. " But.it's all coming from you." She frowned in confusion, what could this mean.  
  
" Would you like to sit down?" Padme asked, her voice shaking with her nervousness. Then it hit Mayco.  
  
" You're pregnant," she gasped. " You're pregnant, and it's twins, and they're Anakin's because they are so strong!" Her tone was almost accusing, why was she getting angry?  
  
'Because I just found out they're mine, and now they're not mine anymore!' a small, but very angry, voice said in the back of her mind. Mayco shook her head, that wasn't true.or was it?  
  
She turned her attention back on Padme, who was hanging her head sadly. Mayco felt her heart go out to her, her mother looked so distressed.  
  
" What's wrong?" Mayco asked sounding concerned and she approached Padme tentatively. Padme shook her head and tears started trickling from her face onto her beautiful dress. " Senator Amidala?" As she said this Padme looked up, tears positively streaming down her face.  
  
" Don't call me that, not now," she said quickly. Mayco gulped and nodded. " Call me Padme."  
  
" Okay.Padme, but, why are you crying?" Mayco asked, finally reaching her mother and sitting down next to her. Padme shook her head.  
  
" It's just been an emotional day, that's all," she said quickly.  
  
" That's not it," Mayco said simply. " You're pregnant, I don't understand! You have two very strong babies inside of you and.and Anakin doesn't know does he?" Padme shook her head in a defeated way making Mayco frown more. " But if I can sense them, then why can't he?" Padme sighed and looked up into Mayco's concerned face. The sight nearly made her cry more.  
  
" I put all my energy into hiding it from him.I don't know how, but he doesn't sense them," she said.  
  
" But why don't you want him to know?" Mayco asked. Padme's face contorted in pain and she shook her head.  
  
" I don't know how much you know about Anakin," Padme said softly. Mayco's jaw fell open.  
  
" Hello? I've seen the guy practically every day of my life; I'd say I know him pretty much completely!" she said angrily. Padme uttered a little sound of surprise at Mayco's sudden anger.  
  
" That's not what I meant," she said quickly. " I didn't say that right. What I meant was, I don't think you know about how.different he can be when he gets emotional." Padme paused. " Have you ever seen his fury?" Mayco gulped and turned away from Padme quickly. She had once seen his fury, only once.  
  
She had been three years old, and she had been kidnapped by an opportunist who saw that he could probably get some money out of the Jedi toddler. After two whole weeks of suffering Anakin and Obi-wan had tracked them down. Then after finding Mayco in the battered state she was Anakin seemed to lose control and he viciously killed the man.  
  
Mayco nodded.  
  
" So have I," Padme said softly. " He has a lot of anger in him, ever since he was a little boy. The first time I saw it was when his mother died, he massacred a whole camp of Sandpeople, he was in such a mess." Mayco nodded, she had heard versions of this story before, never quite this graphic though. " He's very, unstable, emotional! And over the last eight years he's been getting worse," Padme continued in an even softer tone. Mayco snapped her eyes on the senator.  
  
" Because of me," she stated clearly. Padme shook her head sadly.  
  
" Not because of you, we love you.he loves you, that's what makes him so emotional. Jedi aren't supposed to love, it makes them too emotional, too unstable," Padme said firmly.  
  
" So, because of me," Mayco repeated.  
  
" No! Because of both of us, and the way he loves us!" Padme said loudly silencing Mayco.  
  
" But that doesn't explain why you're not telling him about the twins," Mayco said after a while. Padme shook her head.  
  
" The council have requested that I don't," Padme said bitterly, indicating to Mayco straight away that this request was probably an order. " I think, from what I can gather, and from what Obi-wan's told me."  
  
" Obi-wan gets to know, but not Anakin?" Mayco asked getting agitated. Padme ignored this and carried on.  
  
" From what Obi-wan's told me," she repeated. " Yoda had a vision, a dark vision, he won't tell anyone what happened, but it's absolutely crucial that I keep the twins a secret from Anakin for now," Padme said. Mayco narrowed her eyes at the senator.  
  
" Just for now?" she asked cautiously.  
  
" Yes probably, just for a little while," Padme said. Mayco nodded in a resigned way and then gave out a deep sigh, thinking all the while about what Dooku had said about their plans for her father and her own vision's implications dawning on her; her resolve strengthened, whatever it took, she would protect her father.  
  
" You have a lot of your father in you," Padme suddenly said, causing Mayco to snap out of her unhappy reverie. Missing the hidden meaning in Padme's words Mayco simply nodded. She couldn't know how scared Padme felt when she saw the same anger that Anakin had in her young daughter. Two of the most powerful Jedi ever, yet so very emotional; a very dangerous combination.  
  
" I don't know why I came here," Mayco then said and she got to her feet to leave. " I should go!" she added and started heading to the door. Padme jumped to her feet too.  
  
" Please don't, stay a little while," she called after her daughter.  
  
" No really I should go, I can't." But Mayco stopped and she turned around slowly. That feeling she had just had. What was that? " What was." she mumbled, but then she felt it again, it was coming from the senator.no it was coming from the twins. She approached the senator slowly, focusing all her energy on communicating with those two powerful little beings inside of her. She was detecting emotions and meanings, no words, but definitely meanings. They were warning her about something, they were trying to tell her to take caution.  
  
" I don't understand," Mayco murmured to herself. " I don't understand how this is even possible!"  
  
" What is it?" Padme asked frowning.  
  
" It's those babies, they're.well they're warning me about something. I can read their emotions, they are somehow telling me their emotions. They feel safe, they feel protected, but they know that's going to change, and they love.they love you and they love me," she explained frowning so much her eyebrows practically met in the middle. " And yeah, they're warning me, they're very afraid about something that's going to happen to me." She trailed off and stared up into Padme's eyes and for the first time, she felt what it was like to have a mother. Those eyes gave her instant comfort. With everything that had been going on, and with everything that was going to happen, she needed something, and those eyes somehow gave it to her.  
  
" Don't be scared," Padme said softly and she reached out her hand to Mayco. After a moment's hesitation she rushed to her arms and the two embraced. All of her fears and the pure emotion she had felt over the last few hours washed away, and all that she was left with was a feeling of complete contentment and safety.  
  
She had a mother. She loved her mother.  
  
* * *  
  
Tracking down Mayco when she chose to elude you was never an easy task. Mace spent several hours hunting for her, until the girl finally realised that he wasn't going to give up, so she let herself be found. As she sat in the grass of the large open garden (yet another one of the temple's indoor botanical wonders) she felt him drawing nearer and wondered what he would tell her and.what she would tell him.  
  
Somehow it was impossible to feel afraid in this beautiful haven, with no one else around you and just the noises of the animals and the plants to worry about. Padme had stilled a lot of troubles in the young girl and she finally felt the most peace she had in a long time.  
  
" Beautiful up here isn't it?" a voice asked from behind her. Mayco smiled; that was quick even for Master Windu.  
  
" Very," Mayco replied and he stepped into her eye line. Contrary to popular belief, she didn't dislike Master Windu, she had just never had any normal interaction with him, he always either punished her, or was teaching her. She just didn't know what to make of this man.  
  
He sat down in the grass opposite her and started fiddling with a blade of grass, pulling at hi absent-mindedly.  
  
" I don't know what I am going to say to you," he told her eventually. Mayco frowned at him; that was very uncouncil-like of him; they always knew how they were going to lecture you. " Yes I know, usually I do, but this is so very different," he said and Mayco rolled her eyes.  
  
" Firstly can you please stop with the mind reading thing?" she asked in what she hoped was a kind tone. Taking a moment to picture Anis' reaction to such plain rudeness with a council member.  
  
To Mayco's surprise Master Windu smiled broadly and he nodded.  
  
" Fair enough," he said cheerfully. " The truth is I just came to talk to you. Everyone is very worried about you." Mayco nodded and smiled as a butterfly landed on her knee and fluttered its wings. " But you don't seem concerned at all," Master Windu said loudly.  
  
" No not really," she said simply. " I spoke to my mother," she added. " She cleared things up for me!" Master Windu nodded, he had been expecting this. " I know about your little secret, the one that everyone is hiding from Anakin."  
  
" Mayco it is very important that Anakin doesn't find out about this yet!" he said firmly. Mayco shrugged.  
  
" I know. Don't worry I won't tell him," she said casually. Mace nodded, sensing her sincerity, knowing she was being honest.  
  
" I'm happy you understand," he said and then he frowned slightly. He was hiding something else. Mayco snapped her gaze onto him and raised her eyebrows in a questioning way.  
  
" Don't tell me there's more!" she exclaimed in a bemused tone. Master Windu inhaled deeply and nodded.  
  
" Just one thing," he said softly. " When you were two years old Yoda had a revelation and it was about you. I supposed you know about the prophecy surrounding Anakin?" Mayco nodded. " He is the one who will bring balance to the force." Mayco nodded again, why did these council-types always have to drag stuff out? " Well many years ago as I said, Yoda was having difficulty meditating, his thoughts were all on you. Then all of a sudden in a vision of thoughts and sounds and images it came to him, his revelation. You are the balance that Anakin must bring to the force Mayco." Mayco's jaw dropped open. This was new.  
  
" Excuse me? I'm the balance? How can I be balance? I'm not balanced! I'm like.not balanced.imbalanced!" she cried indignantly.  
  
" That is why you are balance," Master Windu said simply. " You are powerful no one will deny that, yet you have to very different sides to you. You are compassionate and kind and good, but you also like to bend rules, you crave success and you can be heartless. You are a fine balance between all those things, so many opposites all in one person, you are the perfect image of balance," he explained. Mayco frowned, but she could see what he meant, even though she wanted to give him a good kick for calling her heartless.  
  
" So if I'm balance and I've been." she began softly, but then she stopped. They didn't know about her own visions, they didn't know what she had seen and what she knew in herself, something that was horrible and inevitable, but nonetheless something that was going to happen: her death.  
  
'So if I'm balance and I'm going to die, then there won't be any more balance.the Sith they'll...' she thought to herself.  
  
" Mayco, there is something you are hiding from me also," Mace said suddenly. Mayco grimaced.  
  
" With all due respect sir, I would like to keep this hidden," she said cautiously. Master Windu stared her in the eye.  
  
" You must do what you feel is right, you must do what you feel is best for the greater good and not let your emotions, or your affections get in the way of your decisions," he said after a while and he got to his feet. " For someone so young, you hold a lot of responsibility in your hands. We have tried to support you and bare the weight along the way, but you have to complete your fate alone, with no one to help you. We hoped that you wouldn't be so young when you had to face these facts, but we can't control that. Just remember Mayco, emotions and feelings lead to the dark side; you must think of the Jedi, you must think beyond yourself! May the Force be with you young Skywalker." With this he left and Mayco watched him leave.  
  
So he knew, what was the purpose of that speech if he didn't know? Something big was going to happen, something only she had the power to stop, but what did this have to do with her death?  
  
She felt new hope, she felt a new breathe of life, maybe this wasn't her time. Maybe her death was not as inevitable as she had supposed. Confidence filled the young girl and as she sat staring at the retreating Jedi Master.  
  
" I will not die," she said out loud, full of confidence that she felt deep inside of her. " I will not die. I am balance. I will not die!"  
  
* * *  
  
To be continued soon 


	5. Changing faces

The End  
  
Changing faces  
  
The screams were clear from all the way down the corridor. At first it sounded as though someone was in a lot of pain, so Mayco sprinted down her corridor and charged into her room lightsaber in hand. The screaming stopped and both Tio and Anis looked at her in shock.  
  
" Uh hey," Mayco said uneasily, reattaching her lightsaber to her belt. " What's going on?" she then asked seeing Tio was red in the face and Anis had that sickly smile on her face.  
  
" I was just telling Tio about her punishment," Anis said cheerfully. " She lied to the council and now she has to pay, because I went and told Master Uvek. Master Uvek was right to." Anis began in her bubbly voice.  
  
" Oh for God's sake would you just shut up?"  
  
Anis stopped abruptly and stared at Mayco in a surprised silence.  
  
" Seriously, I am sick to death of your endless whining. Do you lack any sense of decency? We don't care if Master Uvek is the greatest Jedi that ever lived, we really don't! We hate you and we hate her, and I don't care what you say about hate leading to the dark side, right now I just don't care," she said coldly. " You are the most irritating, mindless, talentless wannabe that has ever walked through the doors of this temple. We are too good to be hanging out with the likes of you. So you are going to pack your bags and get out," she continued, realising with certain satisfaction that Anis was shaking and she had tears trickling down her face. " Now," Mayco hissed, and she conveyed so much power in her voice that Anis grabbed her belongings roughly, stuffed them in some bags and ran out in less than five minutes.  
  
" I don't think I have ever been so proud of you before!" Tio said, her hand held on her heart and a Cheshire cat grin plastered on her face. " I honestly honestly don't!" Mayco smiled tiredly and lay down on her bed.  
  
" This has been the longest day of my entire life!" she grumbled. " And I am so hungry!" she said sitting up.  
  
" Dinner finished hours ago man," Tio said gravely, she too felt hungry. " It seems like forever since we had lunch!" Mayco nodded sadly to herself; that was definitely true.  
  
" Let's go down to the kitchen and see if we can scrounge some food," Mayco finally said and she climbed off her bed. Tio nodded enthusiastically and the pair headed out. They chatted happily as they made their way down to the kitchens and to Mayco it was like old times again; the gruesome twosome out on a raid.  
  
They managed to get to the kitchens without running across the dreaded Monitor Shari and they carefully pushed the large doors open and found the night-staff relaxing. There was always kitchen staff on duty, because some of the Jedi and their apprentices ate at very odd times. Usually it was strictly forbidden for the children of the temple to come down to the kitchens themselves, but Mayco and Tio were welcome visitors for the kitchen staff.  
  
This time was no exception; as soon as they walked in the staff jumped to their feet and within no time the pair were sat at the central table tucking in greedily to their snacks. Everything went well till one of the cooks placed a bowl of drelliks in front of them. Both of them pushed their chairs away from the table as quickly as they could.  
  
" What's wrong with you two?" the cook asked frowning. " It's just drelliks, I though all children loved that stuff?"  
  
" We're not like most children," Tio said quickly. " I don't see how you can serve that stuff with a clear conscience," she complained. The staff raised their eyebrows.  
  
" There's absolutely nothing wrong with this dish," the cook said getting slightly edgy. " I mean all it is, is vegetables, seasonings and drellik meat, and juts a little bit of sweetenings, that's why children love it so much!" Tio and Mayco frowned at each other.  
  
" Drellik meat?" they both stuttered.  
  
" As in meat? Real animal meat?" Tio asked. The staff nodded with incredulous looks on their faces.  
  
" So it's not like." Mayco began, but cleared her throat uneasily. " Uh animal dung and um.entrails?" She trailed off softly, but the staff heard and burst out laughing. Mayco and Tio glowed red and hung their heads.  
  
" Who told you that?" the cook asked.  
  
" Leivo Corran," they both said softly.  
  
" That little nightmare! You actually believed her? I thought you two were supposed to be intelligent?" the cook laughed.  
  
" Yeah we are, we just." Tio began, but she trailed off and just shook her head. " Acted like idiots I guess."  
  
" Oh I am going to kill her the next time I see her!" Mayco hissed angrily.  
  
" She's the padawan of Master Aram'le now, we'll never see her," Tio muttered dejectedly.  
  
" Oh really?" Mayco asked grinning and she nodded feeling satisfied. " Master Aram'le? Well then she's suffering enough, that's cool!"  
  
The pair finished their dinner and then returned to their room full and content. They changed quickly and then went to the bathroom to get washed up and brush their teeth. Soon enough they were lying tucked up in bed. Tio fell asleep easily, but Mayco lay awake for several hours thinking over what she had found out and also thinking that maybe she would go and apologise for making Anis cry; Mace was right, she was just that little bit heartless.  
  
'But hey, I'm balance, I get to do what I want' she thought cheerfully and with this she closed her eyes and fell asleep, dreaming only of speedway races and winning the league, with a small smile on her face.  
  
* * *  
  
" When do we get to strike master? Now is the perfect time, they're all in turmoil, they have lost their precious control, we have to..." Dooku said in a bitter tone, his contempt for the Jedi still grew with every day that passed, every day that he had to keep hidden away.  
  
" We act when I say we act," his master countered him coldly. " We will have our day Count Dooku. Many things must still happen before the timing is right for action. Many things must still happen." Dooku stared at his master and shook his head.  
  
" I don't see how much else can happen, she knows everything!" he hissed, but he instantly regretted it as his master, Darth Sidious rounded on him with an expression on his face that in times to come would bring a full grown man to his knees, weeping for mercy.  
  
" You must learn patience," he said quietly, but his tone was literally dripping with contempt. " She knows very little still, it may be a while before they are both ready. They do not yet know the most important thing of all: total unconditional love!"  
  
* * *  
  
As the days passed Mayco's life settled down again. In fact it would be safe to say that it was practically normal. The only difference was that she hadn't seen Anakin at all since that dreaded day in the training garden.  
  
She had seen Obi-wan a few times and they had only briefly talked about what had happened. In general Mayco didn't enjoy talking about it, even though grudgingly she had come to terms with it; she wanted to forget about all that for as long as time would let her.  
  
She had also seen Padme once or twice, and they had chatted, caught up on everything that they had missed. Mayco knew that she had a very strong bond with her mother already and it made her very scared. One thing she really didn't need was more attachments.  
  
After a week she finally felt it was time to confront Anakin. She woke up very early and changed into her training clothes, and then she headed out leaving Tio to get another two hours' sleep before their morning classes.  
  
She first headed towards the mess hall; she needed to think about what she was going to say. Several Jedi Masters and their Padawan learners were eating in the mess hall, but none of the children were up yet. All of them stared as she walked in, collected a tray and took a seat in a secluded corner of the hall in front of one of the porthole-like windows.  
  
She stared out as she ate, watching the early morning traffic with a certain feeling of contentment. She thought about what it would be like to see Anakin again. It had been strange not seeing him, not that a week was a long time, she had gone for whole months without seeing him before when he and Obi-wan went on faraway missions, but this was so different.  
  
" He's your father now that's why," she mumbled and she suppressed a smile. It still felt so strange when she heard it said out loud. Then she sighed, she wasn't sure if she would ever be able to forgive him. Her relationship with him had been one of the closest in her life, along with her bond with Tio and Obi-wan, yet now everything was different. Now it really ought to be one of the closest and she wasn't sure if she wanted that.  
  
'Do I even want a dad?' a small voice piped up in her mind. Mayco closed her eyes and hung her head slightly, she wasn't sure. Fathers.families, they meant pain. What if she lost him again? Would she cope a second time?  
  
For the hundredth time that week she found herself praying, hands clasped together tightly, her head bent low over them, wishing that she be sent back in time to before all this happened. The only thing that she was perfectly clear on was that she had been happier before all this had happened!  
  
" Wishing for anything good?"  
  
Mayco's eyes snapped open. This wasn't supposed to happen, she wasn't ready to see him yet.  
  
" Can I sit down?" Mayco nodded quickly and he stepped into her eye line and took the seat opposite her. He looked tired, and a lot older, but Mayco realised that the latter had something to do with her perceiving him differently.  
  
" How have you been?" she asked, trying to think of anything intelligent to say. Anakin shrugged his shoulders.  
  
" Okay, you?" Mayco shrugged too and hung her head again.  
  
" You're up early," Anakin then said. Mayco nodded gently, still avoiding his eyes. " Couldn't you sleep?"  
  
" No, it's not that," she mumbled. " I was actually going to go see you, we need to talk." With this she finally lifted her head and looked him straight in the eye. The intensity of the emotion she saw there made her look away again.  
  
" Yeah we do," he said and now it was his turn to hang his head.  
  
" Let's just get one thing straight, I am not calling you daddy!" Mayco said firmly and to her surprise Anakin burst out laughing.  
  
" I wouldn't think of it," he said fondly catching her eye again and she suppressed her smile. She was forgiving him too easily, but those eyes...  
  
" I just don't want things to change," Mayco said sadly. Anakin lost his smile and a more sober look crossed his face.  
  
" No neither do I," he said truthfully.  
  
" But I'm so angry with you Anakin!" Mayco suddenly burst out. " I mean how dare you lie to me all that time! I don't see how you did! All those times at first when I was so upset about not having a family and all those things I told you about my parents, all those times I asked you questions about them. I just don't see how you kept it a secret!" Anakin swallowed hard and nodded grimly.  
  
" It was really hard," he said sounding ashamed.  
  
" I mean all this time I thought you were my friend, I thought you guys hung out with me because I was cool, but in actual fact the only real reason is that I'm your kid so of course you wanted to look out for me!" she said voicing for the first time, even to herself another thing that had been bothering her. Anakin frowned.  
  
" I do think you're cool, you're a great person!" he said firmly. Mayco glared at him.  
  
" No, I'm not!"  
  
" Yeah you are, you're fun to hang out with, you're adorable." he began.  
  
" Anakin!" she complained sounding outraged. Anakin smiled and shook his head.  
  
" Okay so you were adorable when you were little. I've enjoyed every single day of hanging out with you. Yes at first I wanted to see you because you're mine, you're right we would have never befriended you unless you were, but since that first day, your charm has kept us coming back. You being such a unique person, that's what kept us coming back. You're my greatest friend Mayco," he explained sounding emotional again. Mayco stayed silent thinking about what he had said, she felt touched.  
  
" Well I'm still angry with you," she hissed, but her heart wasn't in it. " Just so you know," she added quickly. " And I'm really not going to call you daddy?" Anakin grinned broadly at her.  
  
" That's okay with me," he said and after a moment's hesitation he held his pinkie out to her from across the table. " Truce?"  
  
Mayco eyed his little finger for a moment, but then reached out tentatively and looped her own little finger through it.  
  
" Truce," she agreed and she caught his eye again and smiled. Maybe this wasn't so bad, as long as nothing changed, this she could live with! " Hey on a scale of one to ten, how spoilt did I just sound?" she asked as they got to their feet. Anakin grinned and shrugged.  
  
" I'd say an eight," he said cheerfully. Mayco smiled happily and the pair set off, heading out of the mess hall. When the vast indoor balcony/walkway leading along the edge of the main foyer they stopped. Anakin had to go on a short mission with Obi-wan and Mayco was going to the giant library to study.  
  
It felt strange as she hugged him goodbye and wished him luck. She felt strangely nervous, as if something was going to happen to him. When she lost sight of him she ambled over to the massive library and took a seat in a secluded section.  
  
Within moments she was immersed in a text about the ancient battles fought by the Jedi Order. Reading about their great deeds was fascinating and she became so engrossed that she didn't realise someone take a seat opposite her at the small workstation. She'd just come to the end of a particularly heroic battle and she leant back smiling, but as she looked up to rest her eyes she found three eyes staring back at her. Mayco didn't recognise this particular Gran, but she was dressed in the Jedi children's training clothes.  
  
" Who are you?" Mayco asked frowning. The Gran stared at her for a while unblinkingly and Mayco felt almost hypnotised by her gigantic eyes until she finally shook her head.  
  
" That doesn't matter," she said in a distant way.  
  
" But I know you," Mayco said frowning, indeed she did feel like she knew this girl, but her incredibly strong presence in the Force put her off slightly.  
  
" Perhaps you've seen me a few times," the girl said simply. Mayco shrugged.  
  
" Yeah maybe, but tell me your name, you are a trainee like me, why are you being so secretive?" she asked frowning. The Gran cocked her head to one side.  
  
" You judge things by what you see," she said after a while. Mayco scrunched up her face in confusing and scratched an itch on the side of her face. For some reason this made the Gran burst out laughing. Mayco's expression turned stony.  
  
" What is so funny?" she asked seriously.  
  
" Your youth," the girl replied. Mayco raised her eyebrows.  
  
" Yeah because you're just so much older than me!" she said almost angrily.  
  
" Again you are judging by what you see," the girl said simply. Mayco calmed down and shook her head.  
  
" Well of course I am, that's what people do!"  
  
" It can be dangerous to be so complacent," the Gran said.  
  
" But I don't understand, you're sitting here, you look like you're the same age as me, you're a girl and you're a Gran. I don't see how I'm misjudging you, everything I said is sitting right in front of me!" Mayco countered. " Now tell me your name!" The Gran finally blinked and it eased Mayco slightly.  
  
" You can call me Zel," the Gran said and she got to her feet, revealing as Mayco had suspected, that she wasn't much taller than she was, even with that gigantic head.  
  
" Zel," Mayco repeated incredulously. " That's not a very Granish name," she complained. Zel shrugged her shoulders.  
  
" Hey, what can I say?" she said simply and she turned away.  
  
" Wait, where are you going?" Mayco called jumping up and rushing after her.  
  
" I am going to go to the training garden on the hundred and eightieth floor, west wing, you will join me," Zel replied. Mayco frowned but followed this new girl all the same. Not only had she never even been to this part of the temple before, but she also had a lot of time to kill and hadn't battled anyone other than Yoda in such a long time.  
  
They walked in silence until finally they reached the training garden. Mayco was very disappointed to find it was a very boring garden, in fact hardly a garden at all. The room was filled with dark muddy sand and there was a high yet blacked out ceiling with spotlights shining down on the dirty circular room. Central to this room stood a lone plant, a small sapling and shining down on it was a very vivid blue light.  
  
Zel walked straight in and took her place on the other side of the sapling. Mayco stepped tentatively forward.  
  
" This place is pretty dirty, can I show you to the most amazing training garden, it's where Yoda and I train, it's so beautiful." Mayco began, now standing inches away from Zel, the sapling dividing them.  
  
" Again you are judging things by what you see," Zel interrupted calmly. Mayco frowned and shook her head.  
  
" Well no, I'm just saying," she said moodily.  
  
" In this room Master Yoda received his Padawan training, most of his Jedi training took place in this very room, he planted this young Selia Tree when the last died, his master planted this one's predecessor the day their training began and Yoda outlived it. This is his most sacred spot, so please, don't crush the sapling when we start sparring," Zel said. Mayco closed her mouth and looked stumped.  
  
" Oh," she said. " Say how do you know so much? I mean come on you can't be any older than me!" she added frowning. Zel opened her mouth to speak, but Mayco caught on. " Okay okay, yeah I know I'm judging with my eyes not the Force." Zel smiled and nodded. " So what, you wanna begin?" Zel nodded and Mayco bowed her head to the other girl before pulling out her lightsaber and launching herself at her. Amazingly Zel was ready and the two began sparring.  
  
Mayco was amazed by how quick Zel was. She was faster, but she was having trouble because Zel knew some unseen moves.  
  
" I don't understand, how are you so good? Why have I never seen you before?" Mayco called out as she quickened the pace of their battle.  
  
" I do not need to answer that Mayco," Zel called back and for what seemed like hours the two sparred around the Selia sapling, until suddenly the whole situation changed. In a sudden change of tactics Mayco caught Zel off guard and Zel fell over, catching Mayco's foot. The Selia sapling was directly behind her and Mayco realised in horror that she was about to fall directly onto it.  
  
But the impact never came. Mayco dared to open her eyes and she realised that Zel was reaching out with her hand using the Force to move Mayco gently away from the sapling and onto her feet. Mayco stared at her, mouth hanging open.  
  
" That was very advanced! Who the hell are you?" Mayco demanded getting scared.  
  
" I told you I am Zel," Zel said, but she too sounded slightly fazed.  
  
" But you're a kid, you're a kid! How can you be this..." Mayco stopped and rubbed her eyes several times. It was as if someone had placed a mirror in front of her in the blink of an eye, because she now found that she was staring at herself.  
  
" I don't get it," she croaked, but it was barely audible, so she cleared her throat and said it again.  
  
" You are the most talented child I have ever seen," Zel said and it sent shudders down Mayco's spine to see her own face telling her these things and to hear her own voice being spoken from someone else. " But you have so much to learn. Your eyes can deceive you, you must trust the Force, it alone will guide you to the truth," she carried on.  
  
Mayco was about to speak, but all of a sudden Zel charged at her again and Mayco battled her again. The two identical girls fought for several more hours, neither giving in, until finally Zel dropped to her feet and changed her appearance again. Mayco vanquished her lightsaber and attached it to her belt before she dared look Zel in the eye.  
  
" You're a Clawdite," she said roughly, feeling embarrassed and angry with this deception. " And you are no child!" she added seeing the wrinkled appearance of this Clawdite - a shapeshifting race.  
  
" That is right, I am not a child," the old Clawdite said.  
  
" Then who are you?" Mayco bellowed storming away from the Clawdite and pacing the floor on the other side of the training hall.  
  
" I told you to the truth, my name is Zel Fassel," Zel said. Mayco stopped pacing and walked over to Zel again.  
  
" Zel Fassel? Oh my God, I know you! I've learnt about you? But aren't you dead? Didn't you die like twenty years ago?" Mayco gasped, finding it hard to believe that she was in the presence of a Jedi legend.  
  
" No I did not die, I live very very far away young one," Zel said. " Many believe me to be dead, but I have never done anything to encourage this rumour either. I find it quite amusing." Mayco still stared at this ancient shapeshifter in shock. " But that is not why I am here."  
  
" Why are you here?" Mayco asked quickly.  
  
" I have been called back to the temple at Yoda's request, he would like my assistance in mentoring you," Zel said. Mayco's jaw dropped even lower, it made the old woman smile. " Would you be a dear and close your mouth, I find it awfully distracting." Mayco quickly shut it and smiled sheepishly. " Now, you must go and get lunch, it is late and you might just catch your friends for lunch."  
  
" Oh I missed all my lessons? The council are going to kill me!" Mayco exclaimed sounding frustrated. Zel smiled.  
  
" No dear, I am not the only old friend that Yoda has called back. We are to take over your training fully," Zel explained and Mayco couldn't help but smile happily.  
  
" Hey why don't you call him Master Yoda?" Mayco asked frowning as Zel bent down to brush dust off the sapling.  
  
" Do you call your best friend Miss Al'lin?" Mayco grinned and nodded and left the room amazed by what she had found out.  
  
As she made her way to the lunchroom she couldn't keep the spring out of her step. She was so excited about the possibilities! Her life was going to get so excited and even though the dark events of the week before were evidently the reason for this sudden change, right now she just didn't care. Everything was great again.  
  
* * *  
  
More to come soon.  
  
Thank you guys for reviewing!!! And yeah Luke and Leia are in this, and I'm still trying to decide some events so it could go on for a while or it could finish soon, one thing is for sure, the ending will feel right, whether it be really happy, or really sad! 


	6. Under the wings of greats

The End  
  
Under the wings of greats  
  
" May you are in so much trouble!" Tio burst out the second Mayco got within shouting range of the groups' crowded table. Mayco stopped still with her tray and frowned deeply at Tio.  
  
" Oh I'm sorry what did you guys learn, how to turn into Anis?" she asked sounding amused. Tio blinked rapidly thinking about what she had just said and shook her head.  
  
" Okay never mind, where you been anyway?" Tio asked as Mayco sat down opposite her, pushing Kara and Sa'im Brolin aside.  
  
" I just had one of the freakiest experiences of my life!" she said and she explained the events with Zel to them. When she finished the others were staring at her with a mixture of envious and impressed expressions on their faces.  
  
" I don't get it, how are you always so lucky?" Breiyden asked from the other side of Tio when no one said anything. Mayco shrugged.  
  
" I wouldn't say it's luck, I mean most stuff that happens to me is pretty nasty," she said frowning. The others grinned and shook their heads fondly. " Hey what?"  
  
" Well its just May, you kinda like the attention though right? I mean even when it's something nasty?" Tio asked carefully.  
  
" Uh, no!" Mayco said sounding amused. " Hello! You think I liked that time Yoda took me on that great big secret mission to Degobah and I fell in that pit and nearly got killed by spiders and then this little dwarf guy had to save me and he wasn't even a Jedi just this passing creature? I nearly died and I got so smelly and I had to be saved by this regular powerless dwarf guy!" The others smiled and nodded. " Oh come on! Oh hey guys, you still keeping that big secret mission a big secret?" They nodded honestly. " Okay cool, but oh come on!" she repeated and the others cracked up.  
  
" Mayco, it's just you like, thrive on attention," Kara said cautiously.  
  
" Yeah it's not really a bad thing, it's well," Tio added thinking carefully. " Well it's endearing!"  
  
" Yeah it just means that you like attention because you're a very, uh, exuberant person!" Breiyden finished. Mayco stared at them with a pouting look on her face, but then she shrugged and nodded.  
  
" Yeah okay maybe you're right, but it's not always lucky!" she complained and the others nodded. " This is really exciting yeah, but I won't get to see you guys anymore, not in any classes!"  
  
" Yeah maybe not in classes, but we'll still see each other!" Tio said sincerely. " I mean come on, unless you're moving out I just can't get away from you, and these guys live two doors down!" Mayco nodded sadly, that was all true, but she still felt like she was losing out on something.  
  
The small group of girls carried on eating, chatting enthusiastically about Anis transferring to another group. They were all discussing how wonderful it was that they hadn't got in trouble when an older boy approached their table.  
  
" Are you Mayco Naberrie?" he asked. Mayco nodded and quickly pondered her last name; was she supposed to change it now? Some people had started calling her Skywalker, but she wasn't sure she liked it. Meanwhile the boy had started speaking again. " I have a message from Master Windu, Chancellor Palpatine is waiting in his office and requests you go to him immediately." Maybe gulped, but nodded to the boy all the same. He smiled to her and left her looking at her friends anxiously.  
  
" Still think I'm lucky? That guy is like the biggest creep ever," she said sadly and she left them wishing that just for one or two hours she could trade places with any one in this room.  
  
It took her a long time to reach Master Windu's office and when she got there she tried to straighten her clothes before signalling her arrival on the keypad. After a while the door slid open and the Chancellor stood towering above her. He welcomed her in and to Mayco's complete relief Anakin was sitting on one of the sofas. She waited for the Chancellor to offer her a seat and then she sat down next to Anakin, glaring at the Chancellor slightly more vicious than she realised. She still hadn't forgiven him for putting her on trial.  
  
*You have to calm down, even if he can't sense your anger he can see it, you look like you want to beat him up* a voice said in her mind. Mayco smiled up at Anakin and nodded; he was right of course. So she forced herself to calm down a bit and think of happy thoughts, like her new teachers.  
  
" Good afternoon Mayco, I hope you're well," Palpatine said in a kind- hearted tone and he sat down on the sofa opposite them.  
  
" Yes thank you sir," Mayco replied.  
  
" Would you care for some elarian tea?" he asked. Mayco swallowed uneasily wondering if completely offending him with refusing or drinking that awful awful concoction would be better. Why did he always serve this disgusting beverage whenever he called for her?  
  
" Uh yeah, thanks," she said and she reached out and poured herself some before taking a sip and using all of her control to hide her grimace. Somehow she managed to contort her face into a smile and the Chancellor nodded.  
  
" You might be wondering why I have called you both to see me," he said mainly to Mayco. After a long silence she realised he wanted some response, so she nodded quickly, her mouth still full of tea, as she hadn't built up the courage to swallow it yet. " Well I was just discussing your future at the temple with Anakin," he carried on. Mayco frowned worriedly; that didn't sound good. " After watching your amazing performance in the training garden I found myself wondering why you had not been chosen as anyone's Padawan learner yet. I suppose they have to find someone powerful enough to take you?" Mayco shook her head uneasily.  
  
" I don't think they're even looking," she countered neutrally, not showing any of her burning urge to become someone's Padawan learner.  
  
" Really? How can that be? You're so strong for your age," he said. Mayco was beginning to feel uncomfortable again and she wished that Anakin would say something, anything to distract Palpatine's attention away from her and on to him. " It's a shame that you haven't started the trials yet Anakin, I feel you would be a most adequate mentor. Why the two of you would be most formidable, unbeatable even," Palpatine said darkly, something glinting in his eye. Mayco frowned angrily.  
  
" Well he hasn't," she said quickly and she looked Anakin in the eye.  
  
" Doesn't mean it won't ever happen," he countered coolly and for a moment their identical blue eyes were locked in a cold gaze.  
  
" Yoda warns us that we mustn't think of a future that we might not have," she told him coolly. " You should know that!" She was surprised when Anakin smiled at her.  
  
" And you should remember to have dreams," he told her. Mayco felt insulted.  
  
" I have dreams," she said and she turned away. " I just don't lose track of the present."  
  
Palpatine watched them curiously. So alike in many ways, if he could get them on side as a pair, they would be unbeatable, he was sure of it. The child was proving to be difficult though. Sure she was headstrong, very arrogant and very brave, just like her father, but she had this annoying trait of having an overwhelming sense of what was good, so like her mother in that sense.  
  
" Well maybe you should mention it to the council, they might like the idea," Palpatine said and the pair looked at him again.  
  
" Hardly," Mayco said rudely and Anakin poked her hard in the ribs with an unseen elbow. " I'm sorry sir," she said wincing, that had really hurt. "It's just that it is not our place to question the council. They don't think that I am ready to be a Padawan learner and they don't think that Anakin is ready to take the trials."  
  
" But I am ready!" Anakin interjected bitterly. " If only Obi-wan could see that I was ready years and years ago!" Mayco stared at him coldly again, why was he being like this?  
  
" Well then obviously you're not! You have to learn patience!" she said coolly/ Anakin glared at her, but then his expression softened.  
  
" I know, you're right," he said kindly and Mayco smiled, happy that he was seeing a little bit of sense at least. Then she turned and looked at Palpatine and jumped. For just a moment she had seen something very strange in his face, felt something very strange coming from him. She couldn't put a finger on it, but it had unnerved her so much that she fell completely silent for the remainder of her visit. All she could think of was what the purpose of this meeting had been? It was as if he had intended on leading them astray, but why on earth would he want to put ideas like that in their heads? She would have to talk to Obi-wan about it!  
  
Once they had left the Chancellor in Master Windu's office Anakin smiled down at Mayco broadly, evidently he wasn't as concerned as she was.  
  
" I heard about your new lesson plan," he said cheerfully as they walked in the direction of his and Obi-wan's chambers. " Bet you're happy!" Mayco smiled and nodded.  
  
" Yeah but it's going to be so strange," she said sadly. " I mean what if I'm not good enough? What if they come here expecting someone really amazing and then they're all disappointed and go home again?" Anakin laughed out loud.  
  
" Mayco I have never seen you worried about under performing and so you shouldn't! If Yoda feels you are worthy of their time then you definitely are!" he said firmly. Mayco sighed and nodded, but that little niggling doubt was still itching away at the back of her mind. She was starting to feel uncertain again and she didn't like it.  
  
* * *  
  
Mayco spent the rest of the afternoon with Obi-wan and Anakin, but she only found herself alone with Obi-wan until the evening time when Obi-wan sent Anakin to the archives to research something.  
  
Once he had gone Obi-wan joined Mayco on the sofa and smiled at her.  
  
" Now, I believe you wanted to discuss something with me," he said and Mayco told him about everything that had happened with the chancellor. When she finished Obi-wan sighed and nodded dejectedly. " He is always trying to put ideas in Anakin's head. He's a politician and they are not to be trusted! I'm sorry that he has now started on you!"  
  
" Obi-wan it would be a disaster if Anakin was my Master! We're way too similar aren't we?" she said sadly. Obi-wan nodded grimly.  
  
" Yes I don't think the council would ever allow it," he agreed. " Though the Chancellor was right about one thing, fully trained the pair of you would be unbeatable. That's why he is so interested! It is good to see you have inherited your mother's common sense." Mayco grinned proudly; she liked thinking of her mother.  
  
" When is she coming back from the south?" she asked eagerly. Padme had recently travelled to the other side of the planet to visit a colony of people from Naboo because she had learned of a very good friend that had moved there and she wanted to see her.  
  
" Any day now," Obi-wan said smiling. " Mayco, I know this won't sound like much, but I am very proud of you. You have dealt with more than you should have and overcome it all, I'm just so proud," he said and for the first time in a long time she had sensed emotion in his tone. Obi-wan rarely ever did that. She felt so touched she didn't trust herself to speak.  
  
" Obi-wan, even though now I know Anakin is my real father, can I still think of you as a father too?" she asked after a while, sounding worried. Obi-wan smiled happily and nodded.  
  
" I would be honoured," he said and she smiled back.  
  
* * *  
  
For the following few days Mayco only received lessons from Yoda. After her initial encounter with Zel ("Call her Master Fassel Mayco!" Obi-wan had ordered the first time he caught her talking about 'Zel) she had not seen hide nor hair of the woman, nor any other new faces. She began to lose her happy glow, what if Yoda had changed his mind?  
  
But this all changed one afternoon. It was very late and all Mayco's friends had finished their lessons, but she still had one left and she was dreading it, she felt extremely tired. So she made her way to her usual training garden. As she reached the level it was on she stopped in her tracks. She could feel an immense disturbance in the Force; something incredibly powerful was residing at the end of this corridor. Ignoring her training garden she headed up the corridor, her skin beginning to creep with the intensity of that strange power. She finally reached a door she believed to be hiding this strange power and she pushed it open. Inside she found a large meadow like training garden, not surprising as this whole section of the temple was comprised of training facilities, but what did catch her off guard were the three people gathered inside; a beautiful sky blue Twi'lek female, an incredibly tall and handsome middle-aged man and a tiny Lannik male. All were dressed in Jedi attire.  
  
The three of them were facing the door arms crossed. Mayco gabbled for words and stepped back into the corridor quickly.  
  
" Uh, uh I'm sorry," she stammered. " I've got the wrong room!" Then she turned round and tripped over something. She rolled over painfully on the ground rubbing her head, that had really hurt and she looked up into Yoda's face. She could have sworn he looked highly amused. " I'm sorry Master Yoda," she said grimly climbing to her feet.  
  
" The right room you do have," he simply said and he ambled into the room. Mayco frowned interestedly and realised with glee that these were some of her new mentors. She followed him in and stopped a few meters away from the three impressive Jedi. Yoda stood before them.  
  
" We are 'the three'," the Twi'lek said in an airy tone, but she sounded very kind. Mayco nodded.  
  
" Very wise they are," Yoda then said. " Experienced and wise, teach you they will!" A silence followed.  
  
" What are they going to teach me?" Mayco asked, unable to contain her curiosity.  
  
" Control of your mind," the Lannik replied in a very deep voice. Mayco was surprised; he was such a tiny little man.  
  
" Control is crucial, especially for you!" the man added. A sign of her great respect for these three powerful Jedi was that she didn't get annoyed by his comment.  
  
" Leave you I will, much to learn has the child," Yoda said and he left. As the door shut behind him Mayco began to feel slightly uneasy. The Twi'lek approached her.  
  
" Don't worry Mayco, I think you will enjoy these lessons," she said and she held out her hand to her. Mayco took it and 'the three' led her to a beautiful little waterfall and pool. Scattered around were cushions and Mayco was instructed to sit down.  
  
" I am Deron Siim," the Lannik said. " My human friend is Kiran Martar and this is Kayla Gina," he said introducing the other two.  
  
" Deron was my master before I completed the trials," Kiran said. " And Kayla was my Padawan many years ago!"  
  
" Now we live in the outer regions, and we keep the peace where there is very little Jedi presence," Kayla finished. This seemed to be the end of their introduction and all of a sudden they started their lesson.  
  
* * *  
  
Mayco had never had a lesson like this one before and by the end of their hour together she was so mentally exhausted that she skipped dinner and made her way tiredly to her room. The room was empty and she collapsed gratefully onto her bed her head spinning with everything she had been taught.  
  
'The three' had been so intense, their actions almost as one. Mayco wondered about what had happened to make three people act as one. The Force running through the three of them made up one gigantic powerful force and together they would be so formidable.  
  
Without realising it she fell asleep and her thoughts turned into dreams. At first they were about 'the three' and Mayco dreamt that she was battling them, but then the whole scenario changed very suddenly. 'The three' disappeared and she was left alone in the meadow-like training garden, which then turned into Yoda's training room. She walked into the centre of the room and stared down at the sapling, which started to die before her very eyes. She dropped to her knees and caught the falling leaves in her hands, but as she looked down at them they turned into children, her friends and classmates. They were looking up at her helplessly. Next thing she knew she was alone on a walkway, her friends still in her hands, and in front of her there were three blurry shadowy figures, their faces kept on going in and out of focus and she didn't know who they were, but she felt so close to one of them. They were all beckoning for her to come to her and she felt so tempted, they felt so warm and kind, but then all of a sudden a gigantic bird landed on the platform in between her and the three figures. Dozens of Jedi climbed off the giant bird and one by one they started to fall to the ground as they approached the blurry figures. Finally the last standing Jedi, Obi-wan fell to his knees in front of the blurry figures and two of them stepped forward. The bird disappeared and Mayco had a clear view of the two cloaked figures, one of them was Dooku and the other she presumed was his master. They both lit their red lightsabers and decapitated Obi-wan. As his body fell to the ground she let out a piercing cry and she looked down to see the children in her hands had disappeared. Mayco couldn't move; all she could do was cry as the bodies of the dead Jedi faded away around her. Eventually all that was left were the dark cloaked figures. Dooku and his master took their places again, behind the third figure. A deafening metallic breathing sound filled the room as he started pulling away his hood, coming into focus...  
  
" Mayco wake up!" Someone was shaking her. What was going on? Mayco jumped up in her bed and found Tio staring at her eyes wide with worry. Mayco breathed out heavily and she reached forward and hugged Tio tightly. " What were you dreaming about?" Tio asked.  
  
" It doesn't matter, I'm not going to let it happen," Mayco said angrily. Then she pulled away from Tio who was looking very scared.  
  
" Mayco I know that I'm not as powerful as you are, but I can still feel something bad is going to happen," she said soberly. " I just want you to be careful that's all!" Mayco felt tears sting her eyes and she felt even angrier with herself. Now she was freaking out her best friend in the whole world.  
  
So she laughed and shook her head.  
  
" It'll be okay Tio, I promise you, whatever happens, eventually everything will be okay!" she said and she felt in her heart that she was not lying. Tio sensed this and nodded smiling.  
  
" Good, now seriously can we get some sleep, you're nearly as bad as Anis' snoring, it's like three in the morning!" Mayco cracked up and nodded, quickly changing into some pyjamas before curling up in bed and falling into a dreamless sleep.  
  
* * *  
  
" This isn't going the way I planned!"  
  
Dooku watched his master pacing agitatedly. He was getting so fed up with having to hide away, so fed up with being kept away from people. Darth Sidious' frustration with this situation was nothing compared to Dooku's.  
  
" She is not doing what I want! She is not swaying; she is still so sickeningly far away from turning to the dark side! I am never going to get her on our side! There is something I am missing, something that we just don't know about Skywalker's child," he hissed angrily. " We are going to have to kill her. If the Jedi have her, we will never come to power..."  
  
" Even if we have Skywalker?" Dooku asked, realising that eliminating the child would be more difficult that anything he could imagine with the amount of Jedi Masters protecting her now.  
  
" We will never get Skywalker unless she comes with him!" Sidious growled, loathing the bond the pair had. All of a sudden he stopped pacing and a smile crossed his face. " Wait, I have a plan! We might still get them both." He trailed off deep in thought and Dooku smiled evilly, maybe finally he would get some action.  
  
* * *  
  
Concluding chapter coming up next. 


	7. The lost Skywalker

The End  
  
The lost Skywalker  
  
Several weeks passed and Mayco encountered legendary Jedi Masters daily in her lessons. There was great excitement in the temple with the influx of all these amazing warriors, but Mayco didn't have time to join in with their excitement; for starters she was being kept too busy to have time to think about such frivolous things, if she wasn't learning or eating she was sleeping, and secondly their presence only hit it home that these were very dangerous times.  
  
After three weeks of back-to-back lessons she was given a day off and Mayco chose to spend the morning with Padme (who was leaving Coruscant at noon to return to Naboo) and the afternoon with Anakin, Obi-wan and Tio.  
  
She woke up especially early and to her surprise when she opened her eyes she found the room full of people. For a moment she thought she was still dreaming, but when she moved to sit up her body ached in protest, it wanted at least another week's quiet time to recover from the heavy-duty exercise it had been up through. So she gathered that she wasn't dreaming, but what were all these Jedi doing in her room. She knew each and every one of them as her new teachers. The nearest to her, Zel, held her finger to her lips and indicated that Tio was still sleeping soundly. Then she beckoned for her to follow. She climbed out of bed and followed them out of her room.  
  
The large group walked through the corridors of the temple until they reached the chamber in which the council were gathered. Once here they formed a semi-circular line behind her as she face Master Yoda. Everyone in the council looked grave.  
  
" We know about the visions you've been having Mayco," Master Windu eventually said. Mayco frowned, but realised there would be no point in lying, practically every truly great Jedi in the galaxy was gathered in this room ("this is like a Jedi-hater-terrorist's ultimate dream" she thought to herself sardonically, thinking how easy it would be to wipe them all out in one foul swoop). So she nodded.  
  
" You are not afraid of them," Yoda stated and Mayco shook her head. " Drawing nearer the event they signify is and still not afraid are you!"  
  
" Master Yoda can I ask you something?" Mayco asked curiously. Yoda nodded slowly. " Well my mom told me that you had a vision about what's going to happen and that it's something to do with her being pregnant and that it's really dark. Uh, I was wondering if you would tell me?" Mayco asked hopefully.  
  
Everyone in the room smiled kindly at her and then looked eagerly to Yoda. They of course knew about his vision, but would he tell the child.  
  
" The exact vision I cannot," he eventually said, but Mayco grinned hopefully, that meant he was still going to tell her something. " Difficult your path is Mayco," he said sadly. " Alone will you decide the fate of our order, alone will you choose between what is right and what is wrong," he carried on. Mayco swallowed hard and nodded.  
  
" So I'm going to die?" she asked bluntly.  
  
" That I cannot say, that I have not seen!" he said. Mayco nodded, at least that was something. " Determine you death your choice will!"  
  
" So it's all up to me," she said starting to feel angry, but using her new methods of control that 'the three' had taught her, she easily calmed down. " I have to decide whether I am going to live or die, I have to decide the fate of the order, it's all up to me." She stopped speaking and looked Yoda in the eye. " Because I am balance." He nodded.  
  
" Yes," he said gravely. " So young are you, but the Jedi fate in your hands lies."  
  
" Okay," Mayco said nodding dismally. " Whatever it takes Master Yoda, I will do what is right! I am not afraid of death if that is my fate!" The resolve in her voice was magnified ten times over by the expression on her face.  
  
Yoda climbed off his small chair and hobbled slowly over to her with his walking cane. He indicated for Mayco to crouch down and she did. Then he reached forward and placed his hand on her chest, right where her heart lay. He closed his eyes and she felt instant calm and complete resolve. She felt hope and she felt strong. She felt ready for anything.  
  
When she opened her eyes Yoda was sitting down again. She felt such an intense feeling of inner peace that it was almost as if she was in a dream. He smiled at her and she nodded her head to him and turned on heal, walking through the tunnel of people that the masters had formed themselves in. As she passed each of them they bowed to her.  
  
By the time she had reached her mother's quarters she felt a deep feeling of duty and contentment. Padme instantly saw the change in her daughter; where there had once been youthful innocense in her face, she now saw wisdom.  
  
" Mayco are you feeling okay?" Padme asked worriedly. Mayco nodded and grinned at her mother to show that she meant it.  
  
" Yeah really, I'm okay," she said and she sat down on one of the sofas. " I just saw the council, they gave me something very special," she explained. Padme raised her eyebrows and sat down next to Mayco.  
  
" What did they give you?" she asked and Mayco smiled when she felt the strong curious presences inside of her.  
  
" They gave me respect," Mayco replied. " It felt amazing! They thought of me as their equal!" Padme nodded, but Mayco sensed an unreasonable amount of fear in her mother. " What?"  
  
" I'm afraid," Padme said simply and she reached out with her hand and touched her daughter's cheek. " I'm afraid of losing you when I've only just found you!"  
  
" You shouldn't be afraid of death," Mayco said sadly. " It'll come to all of us eventually. I've accepted that for me it might come sooner than it should." Padme let out a small sob and tears filled her eyes. Mayco felt her torment and she lost her sense of peace, because not only did she have to contend with her mother's heartache, but also that of the unborn children inside of her. It was as if they were pumping out emotion, because Mayco found herself unable to stand near her mother anymore and she jumped to her feet and crossed the room.  
  
But their voices, their feelings followed her. She started pacing the floor, trying to find that well of inner peace Yoda had placed inside of her. She was amazed how quickly it came to her and she calmed down instantly. What had Yoda done to her?  
  
*Don't be afraid* She sent out with all her power, desperately trying to contact her unborn siblings. *Everything is going to be okay! I can feel it, you guys are safe, and you are going to be safe!* She felt their disbelief hitting her senses and she smiled; cocky little things already and they were barely a few months old - so like herself. *You have to be strong, because if anything happens to me, then you have to look after our mom! Whatever happens to me, you have to make up for it. I know it's not cool landing you guys with my problem, but if I'm balance because I am their child, then you must be too! If something happens to me then you have to do what I couldn't. If I fail you have to pick up where I left off. After all we're all Skywalkers!* She felt proud thinking this and after a moment she felt them responding, they were unsure, but they felt a complete sense of loyalty to her. It brought tears to her eyes. *If I never get to meet you guys, then I'll say it now, I wish I could! There's only two things you need to know in life kids, and that's number one, never trust anyone called Leivo and number two, stay true to each other, respect the Jedi code, and be strong! May the Force be with you* With this she felt their presence waning, their temporary consciousness it seemed was fading away. Mayco felt sad when they were nearly completely gone, she missed them already, her unborn younger siblings.  
  
Padme stood up and walked over to Mayco, placing her hand on her shoulder comfortingly.  
  
" Thank you," she said smiling. Mayco furrowed her brow in a questioning way.  
  
" For what?" she asked.  
  
" Their emotions affect me so much, I have been in torment for days, they have been so restless, so afraid, but now." she trailed off and shook her head fondly. " You were the same! I felt your feelings from day one!" Mayco grinned and the pair sat down again.  
  
" Tell me more about when you were pregnant with me!" Mayco begged.  
  
" Well most of the time you were restless, it was as if you wanted to break free, you always wanted to do something!" Padme explained and Mayco listened intently, soaking in all of her mother's stories, feeling her heart swelling with pride that this beautiful woman that sat before her was her mother. She loved her mother.  
  
* * *  
  
" I had the weirdest dream!" Tio exclaimed the second Mayco sat down opposite her. Mayco grinned and nodded.  
  
" Okay, what am I supposed to guess it or what?" she asked fondly and she looked at the dish on her plate grimly; even though now she knew the dish was harmless, Drelliks still managed to make her cringe.  
  
" No you idiot, I was going to tell you, I was just drawing out the suspense," Tio countered cheerfully. " Anyway I dreamt that all these Jedi Masters came into our room and took me to the council chamber where Yoda blessed me or something!" Mayco dropped her spoon in surprise. " Yeah I know weird right? It was so vivid!"  
  
" Uh yeah, really weird!" Mayco finally managed.  
  
'What the heck does this mean? Why is everything so complicated now?' she thought angrily and she searched for her inner peace and found it instantly. Oh how she loved this new power. She instantly calmed and ignored Tio's dream, everything had a purpose, everything was leading up to this one event and only when it came to that event would she have to worry about anything.  
  
" Hey I ran into Master Kenobi earlier and Anakin and they seem real pleased about something, but they wouldn't tell me, they said we're supposed to meet them in the speeder bay in like twenty minutes," she said frowning.  
  
" Probably taking us on a thrilling trip to the museum of the history of diplomacy or something thrilling like that. Remember last time? They said they were taking us on a roadtrip and they took us to that diplomat's summit? I mean come on!"  
  
* * *  
  
" No way!" both girls cried incredulously.  
  
" Yes way, there is a speedway race this afternoon and we have been granted permission to take you to see it," Anakin said gleefully. Both girls couldn't contain their excitement any longer and they lunged at him nearly knocking him off his feet.  
  
" We're just going to watch! We're not going to compete!" Obi-wan warned in a kind tone and he was momentarily overcome by them lunging at him. Anakin beamed at him and together they herded the over-excited children into a speeder. Anakin was driving and within no time they had set off with Tio and Mayco regaling them with stories about the races and the racers.  
  
Soon enough they had reached the busy port and they parked their speeder right by the rundown-looking security hut.  
  
" I just don't trust it here," Obi-wan said miserably as he cast his speeder a longing look.  
  
" Look Obi-wan if someone steals it you can just pound on them later," Mayco said and she grabbed his hand and dragged him over to where the other two were looking for anything signposting which direction they had to go in. Mayco and Tio had never approached Parada from this way before.  
  
Finally, after what must have been an hour of searching, they made their way onto a main road lined with very shady looking establishments. The girls instantly recognised it and they jumped about excitedly. They led the men to the stands and found some good seats.  
  
" I don't know how I managed to let myself be talked into this," Obi-wan said grimly, giving the group of shifty aliens in front of them a cautious look.  
  
" You need to seriously lighten up, how are you ever going to have fun if you don't chill out!" Mayco complained and she and Tio flicked through the schedule they'd picked up at the entrance to the stands.  
  
" Hey Master Kenobi you see that huge scorch mark on that wall, right by that short little mechanic with the pink jumpsuit?" Tio asked pointing in the direction. Obi-wan looked and nodded grimly.  
  
" Yes I see it!" he replied.  
  
" Well that's where we slammed into the wall and our craft just exploded!" Tio said proudly. Obi-wan gasped.  
  
" Well how on Earth did you survive?" he demanded.  
  
" We'd just installed ejector seats that very morning!" Mayco called to him from beyond Anakin.  
  
" Yeah see those two holes up there?" Tio said pointing to two small holes in the glass ceiling over the scorch point. Again Obi-wan nodded. " Yeah that was us!"  
  
" Well I'm amazed your both still in one peace," he said grimly as the racers and their vehicles started taking their places on the grid.  
  
" So am I actually," Tio added thoughtfully and for a while they all fell silent as the race went underway, but after about ten seconds of race time Mayco and Tio were standing up on their seats jumping up and down with excitement calling out everything they knew about the different racers to the men.  
  
* * *  
  
" I can't believe Mishak won!" Tio grumbled and she picked away at the icecream the men had got them as another treat after the race had finished.  
  
" I can't believe that Ni'man'te died!" Mayco added equally as dejected. Their favourite racer, the guy who had amazingly been at the top for half the season had finally died when they're least favourite racer (a nasty piece of work who had once pushed them off course and into a pile of sewage) had won.  
  
" Well I can't believe that half the racers died!" Obi-wan said shaking his head grimly. " You two had better not think that you are ever racing again!" The girls exchanged a smile, but they nodded to Obi-wan all the same.  
  
Everything was going amazingly well until all of a sudden all four of them jumped to their feet in panic. People were screaming in the middle of the street outside and there were explosions everywhere. This wasn't what had caused them to jump though; it was instead the sudden Dark presence in the Force that had entered their minds.  
  
" Sith!" Obi-wan told them calmly. " Come on!" He led them out into the street and saw that everyone was running away from a gigantic looming building in the distance that had fire coming out of it.  
  
" That's the racer hanger, it's an old generating thingy, there's so much crap in there," Mayco informed the adults. They gave each other worried looks before heading off in that direction to check it out.  
  
It took them a long time to reach the building, as they were trying to push through hoards of people going to the other way, but all the way that evil presence grew stronger in their minds.  
  
Once they reached the base of the hanger building they forced some doors open and walked in. There was a deathly silence, but they could all feel the dark presence was definitely originating from one of the higher levels. As if to confirm this, they heard another explosion from up ahead.  
  
Anakin suddenly burst into action and he sprinted to a lift and hit the controls before the others could stop him.  
  
" Obi-wan you look after my daughter!" he yelled with such feeling that the three stumbled backwards for a moment. Within seconds he was gone.  
  
" Now listen to me!" Obi-wan said firmly turning on the children. " You are to go outside and back to the speeder! I am ordering you to go back to the speeder!"  
  
" But Anakin?" Mayco demanded feeling almost hysterical, her second vision clear in her mind.  
  
" I will go after Anakin, you two need to get to safety!" he ordered and they nodded feebly. Obi-wan nodded and before he could stop himself he pulled them into a strong hug. " Please just do as your told for once?" he pleaded and with this he left them and climbed in another lift.  
  
The second the door closed Mayco started running, but not in the direction of the door, she was heading down the foyer to one of the corridors.  
  
" Mayco what are you doing?" Tio yelled after her, but she followed nonetheless.  
  
" This is it! Tio you don't understand, but this is it!" Mayco yelled back and suddenly she stopped when she reached a service lift. She opened the door and stepped in, Tio jumping in after her.  
  
" But what are we going to do?" Tio asked frowning.  
  
" We aren't going to do anything! You are going to stop following me and do as Obi-wan says!" Mayco ordered. Tio scrunched up her face in anger and hit the stop button on the lift.  
  
" Mayco Naberrie!" she bellowed. " I am your best friend and yes I know that I am not as powerful as you and yes I know that I can't do half the crap you can and yes I know I don't have a clue what is going on! But I am not going to let you go through this on your own! I am there every step of the way!" she yelled and her voice broke showing her emotion. Mayco stared at her for a moment.  
  
She knew that everyone had warned her not to think with her emotions and she knew in her heart that letting Tio come along was wrong, but she was afraid, and Tio was her best friend.  
  
" Okay fine!" she hissed and she started the lift again.  
  
" So uh.yeah what are we going to do?" Tio repeated hesitantly.  
  
" I don't know, all I know is I just have this feeling. We have to get to the central generator chamber, and we know this building better than anyone, with the amount of times we've snuck around it stealing parts of people," Mayco said as the lift stopped.  
  
" Well we should go through the ventilation shaft round the corner right?" Tio asked and Mayco nodded before the two girls set off in the direction of the shaft. Mayco pulled the grate of the wall and she crouched down and looked into the empty shaft. Then she straightened again and faced her friend.  
  
" Are you sure you want to do this?" Mayco asked cautiously. " You have to know what you're getting yourself into. We might die Tio, and I'm serious, we might die!" Tio gulped, but then held her head proudly.  
  
" I have not watched your back for the last five years to just let you go through this on your own!" she said, but her voice was shaky. " You're the only family I have, and I love you so much!" Mayco felt tears sting her eyes.  
  
" I love you too!" she cried and she embraced Tio roughly. " You're like the best sister in the world!" Tio grinned and hugged Mayco back tightly.  
  
The two girls separated and for a moment Mayco felt with a sense of foreboding that this was the wrong thins to do, but she pushed the thought to the back of her head and focused on her inner well of peace, She instantly felt calm and she led the way into the shaft.  
  
" I just hope we get there before Anakin and Obi-wan!" Mayco said grimly as they crawled on in the darkness.  
  
They crawled for what seemed like an eternity, but soon they heard the familiar sound of the generators and the gentle bubbling of the molten steel in the massive vats, and knew it was time to crack the next grate and jump down. Once their feet hit solid ground they were hit with a wave of something very evil. Tio shuddered, but Mayco just held her head high and focused on her peace to find her strength. She led Tio to the central walkway and headed down it, well aware that she was reliving her terrible dream, but certain in herself that it was not going to end up that way! The only thing she was afraid about was Tio.  
  
The second two cloaked figures appeared at the end of the hall though she realised her error. Even though all along she had known what she was doing, it was only now she saw how terribly wrong she had been. In her fear she had selfishly allowed Tio to come along, and now she had no real way of protecting her. She could look after herself that was for sure, but Tio...  
  
" May who are they?" Tio asked and she sounded petrified.  
  
" Tio, run, just run!" Mayco stuttered, but Tio shook her head.  
  
" No I am staying with you!" she said firmly.  
  
" Damn it Tio they are going to kill you, run damn it!" Mayco yelled and Tio saw the fear in her eyes. She whimpered and shook her head.  
  
" No May!" she cried. " I won't leave you!" Mayco felt tears stinging her own eyes and she shook her head.  
  
" You are going to die, why won't you run?" she demanded. All the while the two hooded figures approached them slowly.  
  
" Because I had a vision," Tio uttered suddenly. Mayco frowned and shook her head.  
  
" Yeah so did I, and I bet mine was more important, so get the hell out of here!" Mayco hissed. Tio shook her head.  
  
" Would you just shut up and listen to me? I had a vision, I saw this happening, I have to help you Mayco, that's my destiny, that's my purpose!" Tio cried. Mayco was too angry to be touched.  
  
" No it is MY task to save the Jedi, NOT yours!" she yelled. " You are going to die for no reason and I'm not going to allow it!"  
  
" But what if you die?" Tio sobbed, her resolve weakening.  
  
" I'm not going to! Not yet, I know it's not my time!" Mayco said powerfully. Tio looked up into her friend's eyes and shook her head.  
  
" I still will not leave you!" she said calmly and she held her head high.  
  
" Then you will die," a cold voice said. Mayco and Tio both turned round slowly to see that the two figures were now standing only meters away from them and before they knew what was happening blue lightening bolts crackled through the air hitting Tio straight in the chest sending her flying backwards and landing dozens of meters away, unmoving. Mayco felt her presence dwindle, and then fade away...she was gone.  
  
" Tio," she whispered and she nearly collapsed onto her knees. That pain, that indescribable pain that was flooding her senses, it was blocking her well of peace, it was blocking her sense of right and wrong, it was making her blood boil. Oh that pain, why wouldn't it stop.  
  
She lifted her head shaking with anger and pain to face the hooded men. She looked straight into the eyes of the man that had just killed her best friend. Those eyes that she had seen so many times before, that face that she had hated seeing two times a week, it was him...  
  
" You!" she growled, her anger, her pain filling her voice.  
  
" Don't fight the anger Mayco, embrace it, let yourself be guided into the dark side," he said in that slimy voice that always made her cringe. So he was the Sith Master, he was the one who had brought pain to so many that she loved; he was the one who had now brought pain on herself.  
  
Mayco whole body went into spasm. She was twitching with the hatred coursing through her veins. Her eyes clouded over with the sweat that was pouring over her brow and she lost sense of everything.  
  
" I will kill you!" she shrieked and she ripped out her lightsaber and threw herself at both men fighting with every little shred of anger that raged inside of her.  
  
She fought hard and she fought well. Prior to her mentoring from the new Jedi Masters, a battle like this would have been impossible to the young child, but she had progressed in leaps and bounds over the last month. She had fought three of them at the same time and still overpowered them. She knew very well how to fight two powerful warriors and in her heart she knew she could do this.  
  
She was the most powerful child ever brought to the temple; she had fought and defeated all who came before her. She was Mayco Naberrie, a Skywalker, a hero; she would kill these monsters who had destroyed the lives of so many.  
  
* * *  
  
" Yoda what is it?" Mace gasped, but he knew it as well, in his heart he could feel it too.  
  
" The child, the dark side has her," Yoda gasped and he grasped at his cane for support. " Lost is the child of Skywalker," he cried and tears fell from his eyes.  
  
* * *  
  
Mayco was fighting like she had never fought before, she was moving faster and more accurately than she had ever moved before. Her hatred was so overwhelming that she couldn't fight it, she just let it guide and her in made her unstoppable. Unaware that she was being powered by the dark side she fought on. Driving the two hated Sith back.  
  
" Mayco no!"  
  
Mayco saw him out of the corner of her eye. Anakin! She felt like weeping, she loved him so much, what if these men killed him the same way that they had mercilessly killed her friend?  
  
Then in an instant she regained her well of peace, an incredible calm swept over her and she felt a rush of images cross her brain. She knew what she had to do. She knew what would save Anakin and the order. She knew...  
  
She threw Sidious off balance and then drove her lightsaber straight through Dooku's chest. Then she spun around to see where Sidious had got to, but as she had anticipated, he was too fast.  
  
" No!" Anakin roared and the whole chamber seemed to reverberate with his anguish. The cry echoed around the room eerily.  
  
Mayco gasped and stared into Palpatine's eyes as she dropped to her knees, his lightsaber still sticking through her chest. He vanquished his blade and cast her a smile before jumping so high that he reached a higher walkway and vanished leaving Anakin to drop at his daughter's side and cradle her in his arms.  
  
" Why did you come here?" he demanded, his tears falling onto her face.  
  
" I had a vision," she said wincing. " I had to save you and the order!"  
  
" But you're going to die," Anakin wept and he buried his face in the folds of her shirt.  
  
" But you're safe, that's all I wanted," she whispered and he pulled his face out of her chest and stared her in the eye, she was smiling at him. " I'm so scared," she added, and tears trickled out of her eyes. " But I love you so much," she said feeling weaker. " Tell my mother that I love her," she said slowly and she felt her eyes drooping, she felt like she was being called away by someone.  
  
*Mayco come on, you have to go now, come on*  
  
" And and, tell Yoda that I did it, I saved the order," Mayco murmured and she closed her eyes.  
  
" Mayco don't go, don't die, I need you so much!" Anakin cried and he shook her. She opened her eyes again.  
  
" You have to look after them, Padme and the twins," she told him; stopping several times to catch her breathe.  
  
*Mayco you really have to leave*  
  
" What are you talking about, what twins?" he demanded, feeling his heart breaking.  
  
*Mayco really, there is no point, come with me*  
  
" My brother an sister!"  
  
*Mayco stop it, come on let's go*  
  
" I'm sorry, I have to leave now," Mayco croaked and she looked up into Anakin's eyes one last time. " I love you daddy," she whispered and with this the child closed her eyes and her head fell limply onto Anakin's arm.  
  
" Mayco, Mayco no! You can't...you can't leave me!" Anakin yelled at the limp body, but he felt she was gone, he felt she was lost, he couldn't feel her presence anymore.his daughter was dead. His daughter, his daughter that he loved, his precious precious beloved child.  
  
Pain washed over him like a gigantic tidal wave ruining everything in its path. He lost all sense of what was going on and simply bent over and kissed her unblinking closed eyes. Then he laid her on the ground and stood up.  
  
He turned around, his eyes narrowed in such ferocity at his master, who had witnessed the father's last goodbye.  
  
" You were supposed to look after her!" Anakin bellowed across the walkway. " You were supposed to keep my child safe!" Obi-wan shook his head.  
  
" I tried, Anakin I tried, she promised me, she promised me," he trailed off. Unable to comprehend what had happened. Mayco was gone, he couldn't think of it.  
  
Anakin took a step towards his master and he threw off his cloak. As he pulled out his blade he felt all his anger and his hatred and his pain cloud his mind. Anakin Skywalker took a step towards his master and spat on the ground at Obi-wan's feet.  
  
The dark side had him.  
  
Anakin Skywalker was gone, Lord Vader had risen, and that ever-crucial balance in the form of a little girl lay dead. The Jedi were lost. The Skywalker's were lost.  
  
THE END  
  
* * *  
  
I know it's really sad, but this had to happen, it just feels right. Like I said at the beginning, there has to be a defining moment in which Anakin turns and in my opinion this is a possible way that it could happen.  
  
I know I said this is the last chapter, and it is of the main story, but I can't leave it so up in the air with Mayco, because that isn't the end of her. So I will be posting another chapter soon. It's just too sad otherwise. I'm so fond of that little character, I felt too sad leaving it like this. 


	8. Epilogue

A/N - Okay so I couldn't leave it so up in the air, I felt really sad about the way I left it, so this is what happens post-death, and seeing as it's a happily-ever-after again kinda thing, it'll go real quick, and there's a lot of mush, but I felt soooo sad! But I don't want this to have any bearing on the main story, because It's not very well written. So if you felt happy with how the story ended, then don't read this. For those who felt so sad like I did, enjoy!  
  
* * * * *  
  
Epilogue  
  
" Where am I?" Mayco asked the tall man who was smiling down at her. He was dressed in white Jedi robes and he had very long silky hair and a kind bearded face.  
  
" You're in the spirit world," he said smiling kindly at her. Mayco furrowed her brow and cocked her head to one side.  
  
" Who are you?" she asked.  
  
" My name is Qui-Gon Jinn," he said and Mayco smiled broadly up at him and then jumped in front of him and looked him in the face.  
  
" Hey you were Obi-wan's master!" she said cheerfully. " He told me so much about you! You are so cool!" Then her smile dropped and her face fell sadly. " So I'm really dead then?" Qui-Gon smiled and put his arm around her small drooping shoulders.  
  
" Come with me, there's someone I would like you meet, I think it might put a smile on your face," he said and he took her hand and he led her away. Only now did Mayco look around herself. Her surroundings were beautiful; it was like the countryside of Naboo. They were walking along a country path to a beautiful retreat in the distance.  
  
" So is it only Jedi and Padawans that end up here?" Mayco asked as she clung onto this man with all her might.  
  
" Generally yes, other people go somewhere else," Qui-Gon replied.  
  
" Why do you say generally?" Mayco asked looking up at him curiously. He smiled and tweaked her nose.  
  
" Just wait and see little one," he said and they walked in a pleasant silence until finally they reached the retreat. It was beautiful and it resided by a lakeside. Mayco could have sworn this is exactly how Anakin had described the Lakeside retreat in Naboo. Qui-Gon led her into the main foyer and she looked around herself in awe. It was beautiful here.  
  
" What's that smell? It smells amazing!" she gasped and she followed her nose through the beautifully decorated rooms until she reached a homely kitchen. Standing with her back to Mayco stood a woman, with greying hair tied back in a bun and a beige dress tied back with an apron. She was stirring something on the stove.  
  
" Hello," Mayco said curiously, and the woman put the wooden spoon she was using down and turned around.  
  
Her face was very tanned, but she looked so kind. Something about her made Mayco catch her breath. She looked so familiar, but this woman didn't look like a Jedi, was this the exception Qui-Gon had mentioned?  
  
" Hello," the woman said calmly. " Let me take a look at you," she said and she approached Mayco, putting her hands on her face and turning it to look at her. " Oh you are so beautiful, and you look so much like your mother, but you have Ani's colourings, you're so pretty," she said. Mayco's jaw dropped.  
  
" You knew my parents?" she asked happily, but thinking of them hurt, she couldn't see them anymore. Oh how she missed them so much!  
  
The woman smiled at her.  
  
" Yes of course Mayco, Anakin is my son," she said smiling. " I am your grandmother. I have watched you grow up over the years, I am so proud of you!" With this the woman pulled her into a powerful embrace. It brought instant comfort to the child and she buried her face in her grandmother's apron.  
  
" But Anakin told me about you," she said, tears stinging her eyes as she thought of Anakin again, she felt herself totally regress and all she wanted was for him to hold her. " He said that you weren't force sensitive, how did you end up here?" she asked frowning.  
  
" I don't know how he did it, but one day I was somewhere else and the next I was here at Qui-Gon's request," she explained. Mayco stared up into her warm face and felt the tears dry up.  
  
" I'm happy you're here!" Mayco said and she hugged her grandmother again. " What can I call you?" she then asked pulling away again. Shmi smiled and looked up to Qui-Gon who had silently followed Mayco to the kitchen. His eyes twinkled at her.  
  
" Well I always called my grandmother Nonny," Shmi said smiling. " Would you like to call me that?" Mayco thought about it and came to the conclusion that it was perfect. So she nodded enthusiastically.  
  
" Yeah, that'd be great!" she said happily.  
  
" Mayco there is someone else here who has been dying to see you," Qui-Gon said and Mayco turned around curiously. Who else did she...  
  
" Tio?" she gasped and as she said this she heard footsteps sprinting up the gravelled path leading up to the kitchen door, moments later Tio ran in and jumped at Mayco.  
  
" Oh my God I've been waiting forever for you to get here!" Tio cried and the pair hugged for a long time.  
  
" How have you been here a long time, I died like at most half an hour after you did?" Mayco asked, unable to keep the beaming smile off her face.  
  
" Time passes very differently here Mayco," Qui-Gon said. " It goes at the speed it sees fit. To Tio it seemed like several years before you came here, she has been here a very long time, even though in the material world, only half an hour passed. However, since you have been here over six months have passed in the material world, you have had a dramatic affect on time, it has never gone so quickly around here," he explained. Mayco's jaw dropped open and she spun round and faced Tio.  
  
" Seriously?" she gasped. " You've been here a few years? I'm so sorry!" Tio grinned and shook her head.  
  
" It's been fun, there's so many amazing people here, but I've missed you so much!" she said. Mayco grinned and she turned round to see that Shmi was serving the wonderful smelling food.  
  
Tio and Qui-Gon led Mayco to the kitchen dining table and they took their seats as Shmi dished up the food.  
  
" So if six months have passed, then what's been going on back in the real world? What's happened to Anakin?" Mayco asked. " Is the order okay? How did he take my death?"  
  
Qui-Gon looked darkly over to Shmi, who lost her happy look and closed her eyes sadly. Mayco instantly felt afraid.  
  
" What?" she asked.  
  
" Mayco, when you died, it drove Anakin over the edge," Qui-Gon said sadly. Shmi walked away to busy herself with something by the stove. " He battled with Obi-wan and sustained grievous injuries." Mayco gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. " He turned to the dark side Mayco, and he has undergone surgery and many reconstructive therapies and has been reconstructed as a cybernetic-human body. He now knows himself as Darth Vader." Tears streamed down Mayco's face.  
  
" He's Sith?" she cried. " He's a Sith and it's because of me?"  
  
Qui-Gon shook his head.  
  
" No, Mayco that was inevitable, it would have happened anyway," Qui-Gon said sadly.  
  
" But if he's Sith, then what happened to the order?" she asked gulping back her tears.  
  
" The order no longer exists Mayco, they are all but wiped out," he said grimly. Mayco's jaw fell open.  
  
" Wiped out?" she gasped. " You mean they're dead? All of them?"  
  
" Most of them," Qui-Gon replied shaking his head sadly.  
  
" Obi-wan?" Mayco asked tears flowing down her cheeks.  
  
" He's protecting your mother until she has the twins," he said. Mayco's eyes grew wide.  
  
" So he knows about the twins? When are they due?" she asked.  
  
" They are due any day now and Mayco you told him about them as you were dying. I was trying to stop you, I was trying to get you to let go, but your bond was so strong you were very difficult to move from the real word to the spirit world. You wouldn't let go of him!" Qui-Gon explained. Mayco shook her head in disbelief. " But don't worry, he doesn't remember, or hasn't been able to bring himself to think about your death. He doesn't know about the pregnancy, they are still a secret from him."  
  
Mayco swallowed hard and she felt angry.  
  
" He doesn't even think about me?" she demanded. Shmi now returned and gently rubbed Mayco's back.  
  
" He doesn't think of anything from his old life, he is a different man now Mayco. Our Ani is gone," she said sadly. Mayco jumped to her feet.  
  
" Only he's not gone is he? Because if he was gone then he would be here, and he's not here and he'll never be here! Anakin is lost and I'm never going to see him again!" she cried and she ran out of the kitchen and onto the gravel path outside. It led down round a jutting out terrace all the way down to the lakeshore. She stared out angrily at the lake and looked out to the island, just as Anakin had described it. She thought about what he had said, about how Padme and her friends had once swum out to that island.  
  
Anger was stirring inside of her again, if it hadn't of been for Dooku then several weeks ago she would have come to this place for real. She would not now be dead along with the rest of the Jedi order and she would be safe and happy.  
  
" I hate you!" she shrieked out to the empty lake. " I hate you so much!" And she started frantically throwing anything she could get hold of into the lake, lashing out as much as she could. It was as if her heart was breaking.  
  
Eventually when everything around her was either broken or lying in the lake she collapsed to the floor and started helplessly crying.  
  
" It's all my fault," she whimpered. " I destroyed the Jedi!" And her anger turned into overwhelming guilt. If she hadn't of been so foolhardy and tried to take on two Sith on her own, then this wouldn't have happened. She realised painfully that if she had simply waited for Anakin and Obi-wan to arrive and then joined them everything would have been fine, but she had been so confident of her abilities, her visions had been so misleading.  
  
" But they weren't, they were true!" she gasped sitting up slightly. " Everything happened exactly as my vision said it would, there was a battle with the Sith Lords and Anakin was in pain and he was dying, it all happened, only it was me fighting the Sith lords and Obi-wan who nearly killed him!"  
  
" Precisely," a very familiar voice said from behind her. Mayco's jaw dropped open and she spun around to face this very familiar man.  
  
" Master Windu?" she gasped. " You're.you're dead?" she asked painfully. Master Windu nodded grimly.  
  
" Sadly yes, I was one of the first to go in our battle against the Sith and their overwhelming army," he said and he sat down on a massive piece of driftwood next to her that she hadn't been able to move.  
  
" Master Windu did the council know this was going to happen?" Mayco asked soberly staring him in the eye. After a moment he nodded.  
  
" Master Yoda's vision saw Anakin turning to the dark side and even though he did not see your death, he knew that your fate would not be with the Jedi," Master Windu said sadly.  
  
" What do you mean 'not with the Jedi'?" Mayco asked frowning. Master Windu sighed deeply.  
  
" Mayco, your fate, as we knew all along, would either end in death or with the dark side," he eventually said. Mayco sighed and closed her eyes; great, now they tell her! " When Tio died, you turned to the dark side, I'm not sure if you were aware of it, but you lost all sense of yourself. We thought that that was how we had lost you, but then amazingly you turned back right before you died."  
  
" It was that thing that Master Yoda did to me that morning, he gave me this inner strength, I can't explain how amazing it was," Mayco said sadly, regretting that she had not lived longer to enjoy it more. Master Windu smiled.  
  
" Yoda did not do anything to you, he simply gave you hope and confidence, that inner strength was in you all along, you just didn't know how to reach it," he explained. Mayco furrowed her brow.  
  
" You sure?" she asked. Master Windu laughed and nodded.  
  
" Very sure, it is impossible for a Jedi to transfer their powers onto someone else. Whatever you found was yours all along," he said and Mayco smiled happily, that was at least something. " But Mayco what I was saying before is that your fate, whichever path you chose, would be the end of Anakin. Your death drove him to the dark side yes, but even if you had gone to the dark side and remained living, he would have followed. Qui-Gon has told you about the unusually strong bond you share. Well it meant that either you were on the same side, or death was the only other alternative."  
  
" But it's still my fault!" Mayco said grimly.  
  
" No!" Master Windu said shaking his head. " It is our fault for allowing Anakin to be trained in the first place."  
  
" But Master Windu I just don't understand! If I am balance and my fate was either death or the dark side then you guys must have got it wrong, I can't be balance! I mean, look what happened!"  
  
" Yes, look what happened Mayco," Master Windu said nodding. Mayco frowned at him in a confused way. " You died, and the whole order fell! If anything, that must show you that you were the balance that held it together!" Mayco shook her head.  
  
" But then the Jedi were destined to fall," she said sadly.  
  
" Yes they were, but they will rise again, the morning of my death Yoda met with me and told me about a new vision. This once was about your brother and sister," he said. Mayco looked up curiously. " He told me that the Jedi would once again rise to glory and that it would be your brother and sister who would lead them to it!" Mayco smiled despite herself, she felt a glow of pride.  
  
" So they're the balance?" she asked dejectedly.  
  
" No they're not," Master Windu countered. " You were the balance Mayco, you and only you. They are something else, they are hope, they are going to restore our order. Even though it will never be the same again, the Jedi will go on!" Mayco sighed and nodded.  
  
" Did Master Yoda see anything about Anakin? Will he ever turn back? I mean if I could, then he can!" she asked desperately, knowing that if he didn't then she would never see him again. Master Windu shook his head.  
  
" He didn't no," he said and then he got to his feet. " Mayco would you like to see your brother and sister?" Mayco nodded and jumped to her feet in an instant.  
  
" I thought Master Qui-Gon said that they weren't born yet?" she asked frowning.  
  
" Qui-Gon has told you about time here. It is very odd, and since we have been speaking it has moved at it's fastest rate yet and several years have passed, they are small children now," Master Windu said and he held out his hand to Mayco. She reached out and took it and in an instant she felt a cool feeling fill her head.  
  
Next thing she knew she was standing in a dusty room. Master Windu still stood beside her holding her hand. There was a woman busying herself with making food, she didn't seem to be able to see them.  
  
" Why can't she see us?" Mayco asked frowning.  
  
" Because you are not a fully trained Jedi, only the fully trained can appear as spirits," he told her. She felt disappointed, but watched anyway as the woman moved away from the work surface and walked to the entrance of the kitchen.  
  
" Luke, your lunch is ready!" she shouted out. Mayco felt excited as she heard a small boy reply and then moments later a sandy haired little boy ran into the room. She stared at him wide-eyed, this was her little brother.  
  
" Wow!" she gasped and she approached him, still holding onto Master Windu. The boy was telling the woman all about how he had been making his own droid, but then suddenly he stopped and stared directly at Mayco. He furrowed his brow and something in his expression reminded Mayco exactly of herself.  
  
" You okay Luke?" the woman asked.  
  
" Yes Aunt Beru, it just felt weird, I had this weird feeling, the last time I felt it I was a baby! It was really weird!" he said. The woman smiled at him fondly and he carried on with his story.  
  
Next moment Mayco found that she was now standing in a very elaborate chamber, it was a sitting room and there was a woman sitting by the window wrapped up in a blanket, she was holding piece of cloth to her face, burying her face in it.  
  
Mayco cocked her head to one side and approached the woman. When she got near she realised in horror who it was.  
  
" Mom?" she uttered. Padme looked years older, her face was stained with sorrow and tears. Mayco then looked at the cloth she was holding and saw that it looked very much like a baby blanket.  
  
" She wrapped you in that blanket when you were born," Master Windu said gravely. Mayco closed her eyes and felt an intense sadness wash over her.  
  
" She has a broken heart," she eventually said and she was about to approach her mother when there was a sound of pattering feet and she turned just in time to see a little girl with dark hair tied up in pigtails run into the room.  
  
" Mommy!" the little girl called happily and she jumped on Padme's lap, who smiled fondly at the small child and pulled her into a hug.  
  
" Aren't you supposed to be in lessons little one?" she asked her. Mayco watched their interaction jealously and desperately wanted to get closer, but Master Windu held her back.  
  
" Why are you so sad?" the little girl asked. Padme shook her head and looked at the blanket she had place on the table next to her.  
  
" It would have been Mayco's birthday today Leia," Padme said choking back tears. " She would have been twelve, she would be a real lady by now," she said and tears started falling freely. The little girl looked sad and embraced her mother tightly.  
  
" Tell me more about my sister mommy?" the girl asked and Mayco listened intently, but she felt herself being pulled away.  
  
Moments later she was back on the lakefront and she let go of Master Windu angrily.  
  
" She's heart broken! You should have let me comfort her!" Mayco complained angrily.  
  
" Mayco, if she would have felt your presence, she would have relived terrible memories. Her love for you and her love for Anakin are killing her, she is dying of a broken heart," Master Windu said grimly. Mayco shook her head and tears started falling from her eyes.  
  
" Why aren't they together? The twins?" she asked changing the subject to subdue her pain.  
  
" Obi-wan felt they would be safer if he could take young Luke to the planet of Tatooine," Master Windu explained.  
  
" Where Anakin was born?" Mayco asked frowning.  
  
" Yes, where Anakin was born. Your grandmother married a man called Clieqq Lars, a moisture farmer. He set her free. He had a son called Owen and Obi- wan gave him and his wife Beru the custody of Luke. He resides in the mountains, hiding away, keeping an eye on Luke. Your mother and Leia however live on Alderaan. Leia is now the adopted daughter of the Bail Organa," he carried on.  
  
" Hey I know him! He's a friend of Obi-wan's!" Mayco piped up.  
  
" Exactly, well Padme is in hiding on Alderaan and Leia is now the princess of Alderaan," he finished. Mayco sighed and shook her head.  
  
" It's all so incredible, all so strange," she said sadly. Master Windu held his hand out to Mayco again.  
  
" Come young Mayco, let us go back to the house," he said and he led Mayco up the gravel path back into the kitchen. Mayco gasped in surprise when she found it full of Jedi Masters she had known from the council and around the temple. Even her new mentors were sat around the table. Mayco felt a momentary joy at the sight of them, but then she felt grim, that meant that all these great warriors were of course dead.  
  
" Hello again Mayco," Zel said smiling at her fondly. Mayco grinned and nodded to her.  
  
" Hey," she said cheerfully.  
  
" It seems time is slowing down again," Qui-Gon told Master Windu, then he gave Mayco a pointed look.  
  
" Mayco I am sorry to tell you that your mother is now dead," he said sadly. Mayco shook her head and furrowed her brow.  
  
" But that means she's here right?" she asked eagerly. Qui-Gon shook his head sadly.  
  
" Padme wasn't a Jedi, nor was she a Padawan Mayco, she's not here," he told her, but Mayco shook her head.  
  
" But my grandmother is here? And she wasn't a Jedi either! Why can't I do what you did? Why can't I get her over here as well?" Mayco demanded. Qui- Gon shook his head again.  
  
" Mayco you cannot bring your mother here," he said simply. " There is only one person who can do that!" he added. Mayco instantly realised who that one person was and she felt tears sting her eyes, realising she might never see her parents again. She sat down at the table dejectedly and reached out for a piece pf fruit.  
  
" This place sucks," she muttered angrily. " And I mean really sucks!"  
  
Tio smiled at her from across the table.  
  
" That's what I thought, I never thought you'd get here when you turned to the dark side, but you changed back! I had to spend two years with the horrible feeling that you were evil, and everyone told me that you were lost! Things have a wonderful way of working out for the best Mayco, you'll see!" she said. Mayco shrugged her shoulders and nodded.  
  
" I hope so!"  
  
* * *  
  
Time once again slowed down and over the weeks that passed in Mayco's world, only a few days passed in the real world. She had suffered a lot of grief at first, but was gradually getting used to this new relaxed way of living. Tio had shown her to all her favourite spots and the Jedi Masters dropped by often. She was happy, though she missed her parents and Obi-wan dreadfully.  
  
One lazy morning Mayco woke up late and she walked out onto her beautiful balcony and looked out to see that Tio, Qui-Gon and Shmi (who seemed to live at the retreat the same as she did - she had not yet been to anyone else's residence, so she didn't know how others lived) were out on the terrace enjoying lunch in the sun, but there was someone else with them. A very tall handsome young man with ash blonde hair. He was dressed in Jedi robes. Mayco frowned, she had never seen this man before and so she got changed into her formal Jedi clothes and made her way down to the terrace. As she stepped out onto the terrace everyone looked up at her. Mayco however was looking at the man, he looked eerily familiar.  
  
" Ah here she is," Shmi said happily. " This is Mayco," she told the man. He smiled to her and approached Mayco and held out a large hand to her. She reached out and shook it.  
  
" Who are you?" she asked after a while. He smiled boyishly at her and she could have sworn he had a look of Anakin in him.  
  
" My name is Deacon, Deacon Skywalker," he said. Mayco's jaw dropped slightly and she looked beyond him to Shmi for answers.  
  
" Deacon is my great great great great grandfather," Shmi explained, walking over to them. " He tracked me down when he found out I was here. He was the last Jedi in his family; none of his children were force sensitive. No one in his line was either, until Anakin," Shmi explained.  
  
" And you," Deacon added. Mayco stared up at his blue eyes and then beamed at him.  
  
" So you're my great great great great great great grandfather?" she asked counting the 'greats' on her fingers. He grinned at her and shook his head.  
  
" Please, call me Deacon," he said cheerfully.  
  
" Okay cool," Mayco said. " Are there many other Skywalkers here?" she then asked. He smiled and nodded.  
  
" Dozens," he replied and he started telling Mayco about some of them over lunch. She was fascinated to hear about her ancestry. They were enjoying the peaceful weather when all of a sudden the gravel path sounded and moments later Master Windu appeared.  
  
" Hello," he said cheerfully and he took a seat at the table. " Time is speeding up again, I wondered if you felt it?" he asked Qui-Gon. He nodded cheerfully. The girls, who were trying to learn how to sense things in the real world listened carefully.  
  
" It has sped up to an amazing pace, any moment now the twins will be eighteen," Qui-Gon told the girls.  
  
" They're going to be eighteen?" Mayco asked sounding amazed. Qui-Gon smiled good-naturedly. " Hey that means we'd be like twenty seven," she said to Tio cheerfully.  
  
" Hey yeah, man, imagine what we would be doing if we were still alive?" Tio said dreamily. Mayco grinned sneakily and jumped to her feet.  
  
" One thing's for sure, I'd be kicking your ass Al'lin!" she jeered. Tio grinned too and jumped to her feet.  
  
" In your dreams Naberrie!" she jeered back and she pulled out her lightsaber. Mayco grinned gleefully and she too pulled out her lightsaber and jumped over the table. The pair started sparring manically and they jumped over the edge of the elevated terrace and took their game to the beach edge.  
  
Over the last few weeks the pair had enjoyed being able to do superhuman things. They could stick their lightsabers through each other and nothing happened. They loved it and re-enacted ancient heroic battles, taking it in turns to be the Jedi or the Sith.  
  
Mayco was just about to pull off an insane move when she saw something across the water. She stopped still and felt the strange sensation of Tio's lightsaber passing through her neck. Mayco cringed and felt her unsevered neck.  
  
" Dude! Chill look at that!" Mayco said frowning and pointing across the water. Tio narrowed her eyes and suddenly she piped up.  
  
" Hey that's a boat!"  
  
" And there's this person on there!" Mayco added. The two girls ran over to the very edge of the shore and they hopped up and down excitedly waiting for the boat to arrive. It seemed to take forever before it was near enough for them to make out the features of the person on board.  
  
" That guy is really old!" Tio said, but Mayco stayed silent, there was something about him. By the time the boat hit the shore and the man climbed out the two children were staring at him with immense curiosity giving them an incredibly gormless look.  
  
The man stood towering above them and he smiled fondly at them.  
  
" That's a great way of catching flies," he said indicating their open mouths. They shut them quickly and followed him like two little lost puppies up the gravel path to the patio. When they got there Qui-Gon got to his feet and smiled broadly at the old man.  
  
" I was wondering when you would get here," he said kindly, but his tone was slightly grave. The pair embraced, but Mayco and Tio pushed between them looking up at the old man.  
  
" Obi-wan?" Mayco eventually asked and the old man nodded. Mayco couldn't control herself anymore and she lunged at him hugging him tightly. When she stepped back again she stared up into a much younger face, beardless, he was from before her time, but it was Obi-wan, the man she had grown up with.  
  
Tio beamed up at him and then she hugged him.  
  
" How did you die?" Mayco asked sadly. Obi-wan cast Qui-Gon and Mace a grim look, but then crouched down in front of Mayco.  
  
" I was helping Luke save Leia from the imperial troops when I came across Vader, I let him kill me Mayco," he said softly. Mayco closed her eyes painfully: her father. She gulped and nodded and then hugged him again.  
  
" I am so happy you're here!" she said.  
  
" Are you going to stay with us Master Kenobi?" Tio asked eagerly. Obi-wan smiled up at Qui-Gon and raised his eyebrows.  
  
" Of course he will!" Qui-Gon said and he clapped Obi-wan on the back and the group sat down at the table to enjoy some fine wine while Mayco and Tio listened with fascination to Obi-wan's stories of what had happened in the last fourteen years.  
  
" But what's happening now? Is time going really quickly again?" Mayco asked when he has finished his stories.  
  
" It has slowed down, but is still going quickly," Qui-Gon said and he hung his head slightly. " Your brother has just discovered his parentage," he said gravely.  
  
The group chatted in a subdued way until suddenly all the adults stopped and got to their feet. Even Mayco and Tio felt a strange tremor.  
  
" What was that?" Mayco asked frowning, but the adults had all moved to the side of terrace and were looking down the lane. Mayco and Tio quickly followed and they all stared up the lane where they felt a powerful presence. All of them, even the children somehow, knew who was going to be coming up that lane.  
  
A tiny hobbling figure appeared on the horizon and everyone smiled at each other as Yoda made his way over to them. When he reached them the adults bowed slightly to him and so the children copied them. He nodded his head to them and smiled. Then he looked at Mayco and reached out his hand. She hesitated, but reached out and took it.  
  
" Something to show you I have," he said and all of a sudden their surroundings faded away and they found themselves in a very dark chamber. Three people occupied it, a young man, a metallic monster and a very ancient man sitting in a throne. Mayco instantly knew who these people were: her brother, her father and Palpatine. She glared so viciously at Palpatine that she didn't notice what was going on, but suddenly electric bolts shot out of Palpatine's hand and hit Luke. He fell to the floor in agony and memories of Tio's death caused Mayco to wish she were real so she could slice open Palpatine's chest.  
  
Tears fell from her eyes as she watched the brother she had never known sprawling on the floor in agony, and she looked to her father, and felt furious that he just stared.  
  
" God damn it, do something!" she eventually shouted, unable to contain her pain. She dragged Yoda over to him and started hammering on his back with her free hand, but her hand just went straight through him. " Don't just stand there!" she cried and she gave up hitting him. " He's your son! Don't you see? This child you can save! You can save him this time!" she yelled.  
  
" Hear you he cannot," Yoda said softly. Mayco shook her head furiously.  
  
" No, but he can feel me! He will remember me! I'll make him remember me!" she said angrily and she carried on screaming at the man.no monstrosity that was once her father.  
  
Luke had just about had it when all of a sudden Vader moved and picked up Palpatine and carried him over to the railing. Mayco jumped back in surprise and held her hand to her mouth in shock as Vader threw him down.  
  
The scene faded and next thing she knew she was watching Luke remove Vader's mask. She held her breath in anticipation, but when she saw the scarred bald man under that mask she closed her eyes and felt her heart break.  
  
When she opened her eyes she was back at the lakeside retreat, sitting alone in the kitchen. She could hear voices out on the terrace and they sounded jubilant, but she didn't want to feel happy. Everything was over, the Sith were dead, but so too was Anakin, and she would never see him again, or her mother. The thought of living on for an eternity in this wonderful wonderful place without them was so sad that she couldn't bear herself to think about it.  
  
She closed her eyes and a single tear slid out from one of them and fell onto the table. She opened her eyes and stared at it helplessly. Then she clasped her hands together and bowed her head over them, just as she had done not so long ago in the lunch hall. She scrunched her eyes up tightly and wished with all her might that she could go back in time and do things over.  
  
" Wishing for anything good?"  
  
Mayco's heart skipped a beat. She sat frozen to the spot, unable to think, unable to move. That voice, but he couldn't be? She saw him die, he was evil! After a few moments she had managed to regain control of herself and she breathed in deeply.  
  
" Can I sit down?" She nodded slowly, feeling her heart beating so hard she was sure it was going to burst right out of her chest, but then all of a sudden there he was. He looked exactly like he had done the last day they spent together, young and boyishly happy.  
  
She stared at him for a long time and he just stared back.  
  
" How have you been?" she eventually asked, smirking at this re-enactment of their last 'make-up' talk. Anakin's face split into his boyish grin and he reached across the table and stroked the side of her face.  
  
" I've been okay, how have you been?" he asked and she couldn't take it any more. In one quick movement she climbed onto the table crawled across and then hugged him so violently that he fell over backwards.  
  
" I thought I'd never see you again," she said burying her face in his shoulder.  
  
" I would never do that to you," he said fondly. " Imagine an eternity without me, talk about torture," he said good-naturedly. Mayco laughed and she started play-suffocating him. Within no time one of their play-fights of old developed and they were rolling around on the floor laughing.  
  
" Wait," Anakin suddenly said and he climbed to his feet, hoisting Mayco up with one arm. Before he even said anything Mayco saw her: Padme. She was standing in the doorway beaming at them, wearing a beautiful white dress.  
  
" You found her!" Mayco croaked, a lump forming in her throat. " Mom," she whispered and she rushed forward and buried her face in Padme's stomach. Padme smiled fondly at Anakin and smoothed Mayco's hair.  
  
" Hey just one thing, how come she gets to be mom, but I'm still Anakin?" Anakin asked walking over to the pair of them and putting his arm around Padme's waist. Mayco pulled away from Padme and looked up at her parents together for the first time. Only now did she see what a good couple they made.  
  
" Because I've always known you as Anakin, I never knew mom," she said and she walked outside leaving her parents to follow smiling at each other. Gathered outside were their old friends and Mayco sat down next to Tio who was beaming at her.  
  
" Everything worked out great in the end after all," Tio said grinning.  
  
" Yeah except one thing," Mayco said with a disappointed smile on her face. Tio raised her eyebrows.  
  
" What's that?"  
  
" Well we never became Jedi Knights, so we're never going to be able to visit people as spirits or anything," Mayco complained as everyone else got up and walked over to the terrace to watch the sun setting over the lake. Tio and Mayco got up to follow.  
  
" We'll find a way May, we always do," Tio said grinning at her best friend. Mayco smiled and nodded and the pair of them climbed up on the terrace wall and sat side-by-side with their legs dangling over the edge. Mayco turned around to see the Jedi Masters and her new family, Deacon, Shmi and her parents standing around her and she felt an amazing sense of peace. Anakin and Padme smiled at her and then she turned back to look at the amazingly perfect sunset.  
  
'Fitting' she thought to herself with a smile. 'Everything is perfect'  
  
* * *  
  
All mush, but hey, makes me feel better this way. 


End file.
